The Tale of Thomas Barrow
by scribblingblackquill
Summary: Thomas story from beginning to present day. Rubbish title, hopefully better than it sounds. Will change rating later on. Reviews welcome :)
1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note: Fancied writing a story about Thomas' background, I hope you enjoy this :)**

Since the day he was born, Thomas Barrow was the apple of his mothers eye, with his lush ebony hair, skin like snow and lips as red as rubies he was perfect in her eyes. She wrapped him in cotton wool from the very start, making sure he was always treated like a prince, her little prince. His father however felt quite differently, he felt the indifferent towards the boy and never attempted to bond with his only son. Thomas resembled his mother Alice in many ways, she was undoubtedly beautiful, dark flowing hair, striking cheekbones, ivory skin, full red lips and piercing blue eyes, his father Jack couldn't believe such a stunning woman had married him, Jack himself was not a bad looking man, his hair was dirty blonde and always kept short, his eyes an emerald green and his skin always tanned and swarthy, he was nothing like Thomas to look at however their personality's were very similar, the same cool exterior and temperament and a cunning fox like side that could usually work to their advantage as had been shown by Jack when he had used his charm to win over women who came into his shop, they would swoon at his feet because of his charisma and good looks and undoubtedly purchase something. It was cunning but clever, just like Thomas. Thomas' mother and father didn't have much, the clock shop his dad owned was based in the centre of the village, a small rickety old place with bags of quaint charm, the place was magical to Thomas' father, filled to the brim with cogs and clock hands, Thomas also found it blissful to sit there tinkering away, even as a toddler. As the boy grew older, Jack still had not formed a bond with his young son, he wished so much to love him like any normal father would but found himself struggling because of how his own father had been, a useless lazy drunken lout that cast him aside from the very beginning. How could he love a child when he had never known love as a child himself? Alice was told the reason why not long after Thomas was born so she never pressed Jack on it, realising the hurt he had been caused by his own father. The house they lived in was above the shop, a small 5 roomed place that was cosy and snug, always spick and span due to Alice great pride in her home, every night she would make supper, a warm, hearty meal that pleased all their stomachs. Alice loved her role as a mother and wife and always made sure that Jack and Thomas were taken care for extremely well.

However when Thomas was 9, Alice became ill with consumption, she spent most of her days in bed, too ill to go outside or cook and clean for her two boys,

"I love you so much my boy, you make us proud and always be happy. My beautiful baby boy" she said to Thomas one night when he visited her while she was tucked up in bed,

"I love you too ma, you'll be alright won't you?" he asked softly,

"Of course I will" she answered not wanting to worry the boy,

She died the next night and Thomas and his father were distraught. After her death their lives were very strange without the love she gave them. Alice had been 27 when she died, Jack was still young aged 25, he didn't have any idea about raising Thomas, the child was a mystery to him, he didn't understand him, he knew he couldn't do right for him as Alice would have been able too, Thomas had loved Alice dearly and had really gone into his shell since she died. One day he ran down the garden and climbed up the tallest tree and just sat there sobbing,

"Thomas, what are you doing up there son?" his dad asked,

"I hate it dad, I just want Mam back" he sobbed,

"Me too" said the Dad climbing the tree to join his crying son, "but I'm afraid she's not coming back"

"Why?"

"Because she's gone to a better place and one day we'll go there to and we'll all be together again" Jack hoped,

"I hate her not being here" he stressed,

"I know son, me too, but your Mam loved you and she wouldn't want you to be sad and you know…cry" Jack was so unused to emotion; the tears that Thomas were crying unnerved him and were alien to him. He had never been the crying sort himself and saw it as a weakness.

"Do you hate me Dad?" Thomas asked,

"What? No son"

"It's just, you don't really talk to me, you ignore me a lot" Thomas explained,

"I love you, but sometimes I don't understand you, you and I we're very different people, but I do love you very much and never forget that"

"I'm sorry Dad"

"What on Earth for?"

"For not being more like you"

"It's probably a good thing that you're not like me. You're just like your ma and that's great. From now on I'm going to do my best for you son. Now why don't you and I go and fix some clocks aye"

Thomas looked up and smiled, he felt sorry for his father, he was struggling now that Alice had gone, he was useless at cooking and couldn't afford to hire a cook so it was always the most simple meals, the house was never very tidy and his father was terribly lonely, his father was still young himself, to young to be a widower and miserable. The one thing his father excelled at however was fixing and making clocks, Thomas always observed his work in the upmost fascination, taking in every swift flourish and everyone tool he used, it was like magic and Thomas dreamed of one day being as talented a clockmaker as his father. Jack liked the fact that Thomas looked up to him in his work and strived to teach the young boy all the tricks of the trade. It was just them now and he knew he would have to make more of an effort with the young boy as he had previously failed to do in his 9 years of existence.

**Review please :)**


	2. Chapter 2

Thomas and his father managed to struggle on through life without Alice. Aged 14 Thomas and his father had now founded a strong bond that held them together, clockmaking, Thomas was now quite the expert and was certainly making his dad proud, he had a part time job as a farm hand and he was also doing reasonably well in school earning solid grades in most subjects. He was due to leave school soon as he was 14 so had decided that working on the farm was probably a good idea for the mean time,

"You've got your ma's brains son" smiled Jack when Thomas showed him his homework, he was proud of Thomas he just didn't say so often,

"Not quite. You still miss her don't you Dad?" asked Thomas,

"Yes son, sometimes I feel so alone, I'm 30 years old and the only thing I've got to show for it is you" Jack had grown much fonder of Thomas, it was the only good thing to come out of his wife's death, the fact that he and Thomas had gelled slightly better than previous to her death,

"Dad you've got your business too and your great at your job" said Thomas kindly, "If your lonely, then why don't you try and meet someone to keep you company" Thomas suggested,

"I don't think I could Tommy, I loved your ma so much, I'm not used to emotion but losing her was so painful" Jack replied,

"You should let yourself cry sometimes Dad, it helps I swear" Thomas said gently, knowing all to well what it was like to hurt inside, the though of him never seeing his mother again had meant him crying himself to sleep most nights for the past five years, his pillow case always sodden by the time he had drifted off to sleep,

"I don't do crying son"

"Why dad?"

"I don't like to talk about it really but my mother died when she gave birth to me, eclampsia it was, my dad resented me because of it, said it would never have happened if it wasn't for me, he used to just ignore me and say "I don't want him" so I had to get tough, I never knew love until I met your mother, my dad would drink heavily and then beat me I always wondered why and when your ma gave birth to you I didn't know how anyone could do that to a child, a sweet innocent little boy and I had no idea what I'd done wrong. My da wanted my mother, he didn't want me, to him I was the reason his wife was dead. I'm sorry if I ever pushed you away Thomas but I just didn't know what to do or how to be a father because I've never had a good 'un myself" Jack explained, he had hated his childhood, the memories were still fresh and drudging it up made the scars feel raw and tender,

"It's ok Dad; we're good now aren't we? I used to think you didn't love me but then I realised you did when Mam died" said Thomas,

"I'm proud of you, no matter what I'll always love you my boy. Anyway how's it going at the farm Tommy?"

"It's alright I suppose; I don't want to be stuck there for the rest of my days though" Thomas had ambition raging inside of him, he wanted to be someone in life, he didn't want to be stuck as a farmhand, he wanted to do something he would excel at,

"Oh, why's that?"

"I think I'd like to work in service, ma always said she could see as a butler of a grand house one day. There is one upside to the farm though"

"Maybe your mam was right" smiled Jack, "What's the upside then?"

"There's a lovely girl there" said Thomas,

"Who's she then?" said his dad, a proud look on his face at his son taking fancy to a girl,

"Emelia she's called, her dad owns the farm, she's lovely, couple of years older than me, but nice" said Thomas. He was right Emelia really was lovely, she had chestnut brown curls that bounced on her shoulders, flawless skin and deep brown eyes and was the fancy of most men on the farm but that wasn't why Thomas liked her, in fact he wasn't really attracted to her but he found her very pleasant to be around and they got on very well,

"Well be careful, or you'll have no job and a broken heart" said his Dad softly,

Thomas smiled, "Speaking of the farm I'm due there soon, I best set off"

"See you later son" said Jack watching his son as he walked away,

At 11 am Thomas arrived at the farm,

"Morning Thomas, how are you lad?" said Emelia's older brother Ted Taylor, brush in hand, sweeping out the stables. He was a nice young lad, friendly with a ready smile, he like his sister was good looking with chocolate brown eyes, thick dark hair, olive skin and a button nose. He was in his early twenties and interested in horses and good with them too, his dad John was not keen on his son riding horses but he really knew what he was doing, they would follow his every command and nuzzle against his coat affectionately, like they had a mutual understanding,

"Fine thank you" replied Thomas,

At that moment Emelia's father John Taylor stepped out of the front door of their grand house, which really was beautiful, it was a large red bricked farm house with small windows and a neat roof, it was the sort of house Thomas dreamed of owning but knew his working class family could never afford. The Taylors were considered wealthy in the village as they owned many hundreds of acres of land and their farm was always well equipped. A tall blond lad was following close behind John as they made their way across the yard,

"Morning Thomas" John said gruffly, still groggy from having just woken up, Thomas hated John, he was so lazy, he would sleep in late and do nothing to help around the farm, he enjoyed lording it over the workers aswell which annoyed the hell out of Thomas,

"Hello Mr Taylor" replied Thomas politely,

"This is my nephew, Alfie; he's up from Cornwall for the year, so he'll be working with you round the farm, alright boy?" bossed John,

"Yes Mr Taylor" said Thomas, his stomach churning as he looked over the handsome southerner, taking in his every detail, his sloped, slim nose, his plump lips, his wide emerald green eyes and his floppy blonde hair. Alfie held out his hand,

"Nice to meet you Thomas" he said shaking Thomas' hand and smiling endearingly at him, his hands were so warm and soft and made Thomas feel strange,

"Yeah you too" said Thomas nervously,

"Well then I'll leave you lads to get on, Thomas you know the routine of the farm, show Alfie round" said John,

Thomas nodded and watched as John turned and went back inside,

"So what's first then Thomas?" said Alfie, a cheeky grin on his youthful face,

"We do the cows, clean out the shed and such" replied Thomas

"Sounds fun" said Alfie sarcastically,

They got on with the task, finishing and taking a break at half past 12,

"So Thomas tell me something about your self? How old are you?"

"I'm 14, I live with my dad, he's a clockmaker"

"14 huh, you look older. So you got a girl then?" asked Alfie,

"No, but there's one I like" answered Thomas,

"Oh" Alfie said looking slightly crestfallen,

"It's Emelia"

"Does she know?"

"I don't know how to tell her"

"You should write her a love note, girls like stuff like that" advised Alfie,

"Thanks. What about you? How old are you?" asked Thomas politely,

"Me, I'm 19, I'm from Cornwall obviously and I like drawing and that"

"Yeah I could tell, your accent it's different…nice though" bumbled Thomas. Thomas had noted earlier how unusual Alfie's accent was but found it pleasant to listen to all the same,

"Not as nice as yours though is it?" complimented Alfie,

"Mine? I sound as common as muck" said Thomas

"That's cause you are common as muck" joked Alfie, "I'm only joking"

"So, how come you're up here?"  
"I don't know to be honest, I'd rather be at home, but I'm glad you're here Thomas, you seem alright, I don't like my uncle though, he's a bastard, don't get on the wrong side of him…ever"  
"What do you mean?"

"Nothing…I don't mean anything. Let's go get some lunch huh. I'm thirl"  
"What?" Thomas asked, a look of confusion spread across his face,

"Hungry Thomas, thirl means hungry" Alfie giggled at Thomas, who was blushing slightly,

"Oh yeah I'm thirl too" Thomas said,

Alfie laughed endeared by Thomas' sweet behaviour,

"Come on y' dafty, lets get inside"

Thomas followed Alfie into the warm homely kitchen with its dim lighting and toasty aga,

"Hello lads, come in and sit down, I've got a meat pie cooking, wont be long now" said Mrs Taylor, she was a pleasant woman, younger than John by a good few years, she had a similar appearance to Emelia, but had slight crows feet round her kind dark eyes and a gap between her two front teeth, she always wore an apron and her dark hair was always scraped back into a bun,

"Hello Thomas" said Emelia, smiling brightly and gazing at him through her long dark eyelashes, "Why don't you sit next to me?"

"Emelia enough of your flirting, your dad will skin you alive if he hears anymore of that" scolded her mother,

"Anymore of what?" said John as he appeared in the doorway. John had given Thomas the creeps since he began working at the farm, he was a tall, stout fellow, with light, short hair greased back, he had a scarred face and crooked features and his left eye twitched when he was speaking, He possessed a domineering power over all the workers which Thomas didn't like at all. He didn't know how Emelia and Ted had turned out so good looking with a father like that.

"Nothing dad" replied Emelia,

Thomas took his seat next to Emelia and Alfie placed himself opposite Thomas,

Ted came through the door,

"Dinner ready? I'm starved" he stated, sweeping his dark hair aback from his chocolate brown eyes,

"Not long now you glutton" replied Mrs Taylor, who made everyone feel welcome. Ted sat himself down next to Thomas,

"You're popular eh lad?" came Mr Taylors voice from the head of the table,

"Erm" Thomas was unsure of what to say,

"Well you just keep your grubby mitts of my daughter and there'll be no problems" cautioned John,

"PAPA" exclaimed Emelia,

"JOHN! For goodness sake" said Mrs Taylor as she served up the pie,

"Plenty for you my lad" she said softly to Thomas "You look like you need a good filling"

Alfie's mouthful of Dandelion and Burdock flew across his plate of pie as he snorted at Mrs Taylor's comment,

"Alfie whatever's the matter? She asked"  
"Went down the wrong way auntie" Alfie lied, smirking across at Thomas,

Thomas was confused by what was funny so just got on with eating his pie, but was distracted again when he felt a foot brush across his under the table. Looking up to see Alfie concentrating on eating his pie, he realised it must have been an accident.

**Author's Note: Hope this chapter was ok, reviews would be appreciated :)**


	3. Chapter 3

A few weeks had passed since Alfie's arrival on the Taylor's farm and he and Thomas were beginning to develop a friendship. They worked many hours together and would often find themselves distracted and fall into conversation meaning they slacked from work, Alfie would often make subtle attempts to flirt with the young lad that didn't register with Thomas at all,

"How do I look? Even more handsome than usual" asked Alfie as he placed a piece of straw in his mouth and posed,

"I'd say you'd fit right in next door…with the pigs" joked Thomas,

"You cheeky bugger. We can't all be as handsome as you" replied Alfie throwing some straw in Thomas' face,

"I'm not handsome" Thomas objected, whilst blushing slightly from Alfie's compliment,

"Sure you are, you've got a lovely face" Alfie said casually,

"Thank you" replied Thomas,

"That's no problem, so how is it going with Emelia?" asked Alfie,

"I haven't told her yet" Thomas answered,

"You should go just for it my friend, how could she say no to someone as nice as you?" flirted Alfie,

"Are we friends?" Thomas asked, a hopeful tone in his voice,

"Course we are"

They worked through till dinner time, mucking out the cow sheds and feeding and bedding the pigs. At half past twelve they strode across to the yard together to the house, pulling of their Wellington boots at the front door, before entering the cosy kitchen,

"Hello lads, dinner won't be long at all, have a seat" Mrs Taylor said kindly to Alfie and Thomas, "You've not seen Ted around have you? He's always late for his bloody dinner"

"That's because he's always pissing around with those horses" came Mr Taylor's grouchy voice,

"He's got a talent John, you can't criticise him for that" defended Mrs Taylor,

"Talent" scoffed Mr Taylor, as he took a plate of cottage pie and took it through to the lounge,

"What's matter with papa today? Why isn't he eating with us?" asked Emelia,

"You know what he's like" replied Mrs Taylor, referring to her husband's foul mannered personality,

Thomas sat himself down next to Emelia and blushed lightly as she gazed at him deeply,

"Can I talk to you after luncheon Emelia?" he whispered,

"Certainly" she replied, an excited grin on her face,

They settled down to eat their cottage pie,

"This is lovely Mrs Taylor, thanks very much" complimented Thomas,

"You're very welcome Thomas" she replied, grateful of the young man's kind comment,

Ted burst through the door looking slightly stressed,

"Mam, Alfie come and help me out, a cow got loose and got its bloody head stuck in a fence"

"Do you want me to help?" asked Thomas,

"You get on with your dinner lad, keep Emelia company" said Mrs Taylor, smiling at Thomas,

Ted, Alfie and Mrs Taylor went outside and Thomas and Emelia were left alone,

"So what was it you wanted to talk to me about Thomas?" she asked,

"I was…I was going to ask you to be my girl"

"Really?" she said, smiling excitedly,

"Yes really, I really like you Emelia, I think you're great"

"I like you too" she said leaning in and kissing him softly on the lips. Thomas was underwhelmed by the kiss, he had been expecting fireworks and butterflies and all the rest of it but smiled politely at Emelia anyway, thinking that maybe all the previously mentioned things would come in time,

"We can't tell my papa about this though Thomas, like my Mam said he's skin us alive"

"No problem"

"I thought you never going to ask me if truth be told, but I'm very glad that you have" said Emelia,

"I'd be stupid not to" he replied,

"Thomas, have you ever had a girl before?"

"No, have you had a boyfriend before?" he asked,

"A few, they weren't as nice as you, they used me" Emelia said a tear in her eye,

"I won't use you" Thomas said softly, holding Emelia's hand to comfort her,

"No, but if you would like to…do it anytime just tell me, because I want you Thomas" Emelia said lustfully and confidently, Thomas was shocked by her boldness, she always seemed so innocent infront of her family but nodded as he was curious to know what it was like to be with someone in that way,

"Meet me, Saturday night in the barn at 11 o'clock. Papa's going away all weekend to some farm show down south and Mam goes to bed quite early. Ted will be out at the pub so nobody will find out" Emelia said casually, as though the conversation was the most normal thing in the world. He couldn't believe how different the girl sat next to him was to the one when her parents were around. She kissed him again before they resumed eating their meals and it was just as well as only half a minute later, Mr Taylor came through into the kitchen ranting and raving about " that fucking boy and his horses, foods wasted on him, he lets your mother slave away and doesn't show up to eat it then has the cheek to make her come and help him to get a cow's head out of a fence, useless piece of shite" he had obviously observed from the living room window, the two men and Mrs Taylor trying to help the cow and was clearly angry at Ted. Mr Taylor eyed Emelia and Thomas suspiciously with his twitchy eyes before giving Thomas a horrid snarly smile; he then slammed his dirty plate down ungraciously on the table,

"Wash that" he demanded to Emelia impolitely, he then left the room and stormed upstairs, his thick set body making loud thuds on the wooden steps.

Alfie, Ted and Mrs Taylor came back in from outside,

"Dinner's cold now, flipping heck" cursed Mrs Taylor as they all sat down to eat,

"Bloody lazy bastard" Ted swore,

"Who?" asked Alfie,

"Dad" he replied,

"Enough of that, you don't speak about your father that way" said Mrs Taylor sternly,

"Why? What's he going to do? Beat me" said Ted defiantly,

Thomas could've sworn he saw Alfie wince at this and couldn't help but wonder why.

**Review please :)**


	4. Chapter 4

The next morning Thomas and his father were sat at the table talking whilst eating their breakfast of porridge and a cup of tea. Jack watched Thomas pensively taking in his cheerful demeanour,

"You look the cat the got cream son. What's got you so happy?" he asked Thomas

"I done it dad, I asked Emelia to be my girl" Thomas beamed,

"I take it she said yes then" his Dad smiled back,

Thomas nodded,

"Be careful son, I've heard a dad has a bit of a temper on him. That's' the way of that lot" Jack warned softly.

"Which lot?" Thomas asked,

"Middle class, the think they can treat us lot how they like, he was a bit of a bastard with one of my friends, kicked him and his family out for being a day late with rent" Jack shook his head as he cursed the middle classes,

"Yeah Alfie says to watch out for him as well" Thomas said,

"Who's Alfie?" Jack asked,

"He works on the farm, up from Cornwall. He's Mr Taylor's nephew"

"Ah right, I'd say he's right" said Jack before he began to cough loudly in a fit of splutters and barks, then wheezing afterwards,

"Are you ok dad?" Thomas asked concernedly, worrying about his young father,

"I'm fine son, nothing to worry about, like they say "it's not the cough that carries you off it`s the coffin they carry you off in" Jack tried to assure his son,

"That's not funny dad, you shouldn't joke like that. If it carries on you must go to the doctors" said Thomas. It didn't take much for Thomas to worry about his father after losing his mother so young.

"Oh Thomas don't be such a worrier, get yourself away to the farm, I'll see you later"

Thomas got up from the table and headed out the door. The walk to the farm took a while and it was a bitterly cold day. His hands were numb and blue in colour, and his skin was covered in goose bumps. Whilst he was walking he heard someone shout his name,

"Thomas!"

Thomas looked round to see Alfie jogging softly towards him,

"Alright me 'ansum, how are you this morning?" Alfie said cheerfully,

"Alright, I suppose" Thomas replied unenthusiastically,

"Blimey, aren't you a cheery one this morning"? Alfie said sarcastically,

"It's too cold" said Thomas whilst shivering,

"Come here then before you catch your death" said Alfie, putting his arm round Thomas to pull him closer. "You're freezing" he said to Thomas  
Thomas revelled in the warmth of Alfie's body so close to his own. Alfie removed his arm from around Thomas' body,

"Take my coat" he insisted to Thomas,

"Thank you. Are you sure? Won't you be cold without it" Thomas asked,

"I'm so hot that I don't need clothes to keep my warm" Alfie joked,

Thomas laughed. Alfie took off his coat and placed it on Thomas, it hung off him slightly and was slightly long in the arms, but it did the job and kept Thomas warm.

"Where have you been this morning anyway?" Thomas asked, curious to why Alfie had been out this morning,

"The shops, getting Auntie Tess' ingredients" Alfie answered, holding up the shopping bags to Thomas. They walked the rest of the way mostly in silence, aside from when Alfie took out a packet of cigarettes from his shirt pocket,

"Want one?" he asked,

Thomas had never tried a cigarette before so decided to give it a go so nodded,

Alfie held a cigarette in his mouth, whilst lighting it before handing it to Thomas who took a long inexperienced drag before coughing slightly at the smoke, Alfie laughed and ruffled Thomas' ebony hair. Thomas finished the remainder of the cigarette and they soon arrived at the farm. Their usual banter was present whilst they were working but as soon as they took a break, the conversation took a more serious tone,

"I know I might seem a little far in advance with this Thomas"

"What is it?"

"Well, I want to tell you that…if you and Emelia ever have children together, I'm not saying you will because obviously you're just young but…if you do, particularly boys, promise me you'll keep them away from John…he'll take away their innocence" Alfie said, shaking slightly,

Thomas was confused, "What do you mean?"

"It doesn't matter what I mean, just promise me" replied Alfie, he wanted to tell Thomas his secret, he really did but he was worried of the young's lad's reaction, the disgust etched across his face and the hurtful comments that might have been said so decided it was probably for the best to keep that secret buried for the while and tell Thomas in good time. Now that he was close to Thomas he didn't want to push him away, not when he meant so much to him.

Thomas nodded, "I promise" he said softly in a tone barely loudly than a whisper.

**Authors note: Tess=Mrs Taylor,**

**Hope you enjoyed reading this chapter,**

**Review please :)**


	5. Chapter 5

It was Friday and Thomas was working on the farm with Alfie, they were milking the cows, a task which Thomas found dull and boring,

"This is shite ain't it" cursed Alfie in his Cornish twang,

"You don't say" replied Thomas,

"What say I take you down the pub tonight?" suggested Alfie,

"Erm I'll have to ask me dad but…"

"Ah come on, your dad won't mind, I'll take care of you" said Alfie,

"Ok sure, I'll come" replied Thomas,

"Thomas you dirty boy" joked Alfie,

Thomas' pale skin suddenly flushed to a deep scarlet whilst Alfie smirked at the boy's obvious discomfort.

That afternoon when Thomas went home he told his dad he was going out that night,

"I'm not so sure son, pubs can get a bit rowdy" said Jack in a worried tone; he was always quite protective of Thomas now that he was the only family he had left aside from a brother in Leeds,

"I'll be fine dad, Alfie will take care of me" said Thomas,

"Well if you say so, don't get too drunk or Mr Taylor won't be happy in the morning"

"Ok dad" said Thomas,

"Oh yeah and son, don't do anything I wouldn't do" said Jack a small smile across his handsome face, before he began coughing,

"Dad I told you to go and see about that" said Thomas, a worried expression on his young face,

"Thomas that was only yesterday and its only a cough, I'm sure I'll survive it" replied Jack, in an attempt to quash the young man's worries.

Thomas raised an eyebrow at his dad who mirrored his action; they then both went into the workshop to work on some clocks.

A few hours later Thomas headed to his room to get ready to go to the pub, he wore his black suit and flat cap, underneath the hat his hair was styled carefully into a comb over, he wasn't sure why he'd made an effort, it wasn't as though he was looking to impress anyone at the pub. He met Alfie in the centre of the village,

"Blimey someone's looking ansum ain't they?" complimented Alfie in his friendly tone "Who you tying to impress?"

"Nobody" defended Thomas, "Why would I? I've got Emelia"

"Oh yeah, how are you lovebirds?" asked Alfie,

"Ok I haven't really seen her properly for a few days but I am tomorrow night"

"Sealing the deal? You dirty dog" teased Alfie,

"Leave it out. Anyway looks to me like your trying to impress someone yourself" Thomas replied, noticing that Alfie too had made an effort, dressed in a grey suit, his blond hair slicked back,

"Course I am" Alfie replied simply,

"Who?" asked Thomas,

"That's for me to know" said Alfie tapping on his nose,

They walked to the pub, The Red Lion, it was a small place that was usual packed with drunken farmers however it was slightly quieter tonight as a good few farmers had travelled south to the farm show that John Taylor had gone to,

"Alfie, how you doing son, usual eh?" said the landlord, a tall fellow with broad shoulders, dressed in a white shirt and black trousers, he had a friendly face with rosy cheeks,

Alfie nodded, "I'm great Ray and yourself?"

"Fine thanks lad, and who's your young friend here?" asked Ray. Thomas realised that Alfie must've been quite a regular over the past few weeks,

"This here is Thomas Barrow, lovely lad" introduced Alfie,

"Thomas Barrow aye, you must be Jack's boy" said the landlord smiling,

"I am yes" replied Thomas,

"What can I get you son?" asked the landlord kindly,

"Just a pint please" said Thomas as he pulled out his money,

"Put that away son, on the house, I've known your dad most of my life, if I can't give his lad a free drink then I don't know what"

"Thank you" said Thomas, knowing that his dad would've gone mad had he just seen what had happened, he hating people paying for them things, it was the working class in him that made him keen to pay his way,

Alfie led Thomas over to a table and they sat and drank their pints whilst chatting. As the night went on the pub had slowly but surely increased in rowdiness and Thomas and Alfie were both tipsy, the locals were in full swing, singing loudly and generally making a ruckus,

"I've been with more women than any of you" bragged a drunken man in a slurred tone,

"Oh fuck off their all make believe your women" retorted an equally drunken bloke,

The men then began discussing all the wonders of sleeping with women, from the sensations they felt to the positions they'd tried. To Thomas it was an unknown world, almost a foreign language; of course he'd heard such things before but never gained any personal experience himself,

One of the men had spotted Thomas

"Oy lad, you shut your ears eh. You're too young for this stuff" he laughed to himself

"Look at the lad, does he look like a virgin?" defended Alfie,

"I suppose not" replied the man belching before slumping against the bar,

"Come on Thomas, we're off" Alfie said, pulling Thomas through the pub door into the open air by his hand.

"What was all that about?" asked Thomas when they got outside,

"They're arseholes"

Thomas nodded, "I wanted to stay though, I wanted to dance"

Alfie looked at him quizzically and they began walking, after about a mile Alfie stopped outside of a large building,

"Why've you stopped?" asked Thomas,

"It's a surprise" said Alfie, approaching a window to the hall which had conveniently been left open; he began to climb through it,

"What are you doing?" asked Thomas, a slight slur in his worried tone,

"Shhhh, wait a second" said Alfie before disappearing through the window into the village hall, leaving Thomas stood at the door,

Alfie who was now inside the hall came to unlock the door to let Thomas in,

"You said you wanted to dance" said Alfie, pulling Thomas into the warm confines of the village hall and closing the door before turning on the phonograph, and taking Thomas by the hands and leading him to the centre of the wooden floor,

"Should we be doing this?" asked Thomas,

"Probably not but they shouldn't have left the window open should they" replied Alfie, not picking up on what Thomas was really asking,

"No I mean dancing together, isn't it wrong" Thomas replied,

"Says who?" demanded Alfie,

"Everyone" said Thomas,

"Not all men are the same Thomas, doesn't mean its wrong" replied Alfie,

Thomas nodded, not really understanding and they continued to dance, holding on to each other throughout. The music stopped and they un-joined hands,

"Thank you" said Thomas,

"No problem, now lets get you back to your dad aye before he never lets you come out with me again" suggested Alfie,

"I wouldn't like that" said Thomas looking up at Alfie,

"No me neither, let's go aye" said Alfie letting Thomas out the door before locking it from inside and climbing through the window himself.

They walked for half an hour before reaching Thomas' house,

"Goodnight Thommy my lad" said Alfie,

"Night Alfie, see you in the morning"  
"Sure you will" said Alfie as he headed off into the darkness.

**Review please :)**

**Sorry if this chapter is a bit pointless but it's a lead up to the next one.**

**Hope you enjoyed anyway**


	6. Chapter 6

**Changed rating to M, hope you don't mind**

Saturday night seemed to come around faster than Thomas had expected and he was becoming increasingly nervous about his upcoming encounter with Emelia. On arriving at the farm Emelia greeted him cheerfully,

"Morning Tommy" she beamed,

"How are you beautiful?" Thomas asked, still feeling slightly groggy from last nights drinking session,

"Better for seeing you. And yourself?" she asked politely,

"Feeling a bit rough" he replied,

"You don't look rough, you look lovely. You better sort yourself out for tonight" said Emelia moving closer to Thomas and stroking the side of his face romantically,

Thomas smiled at Emelia shyly,

"You're still up for it aren't you Tommy?" she asked hopefully,

"Sure I am, why wouldn't I be?" he replied,

"Well I suppose when you've got a girl who looks like this, you wouldn't really be able to say no" Emelia was of course beautiful but something Thomas didn't like about Emelia was how sure of her beauty she was, she was extremely proud of her appearance and sometimes came across as egotistical and vain.

After going home for his supper and pretending to go to bed Thomas snuck out of his bedroom window at 10pm and walked the 3 mile stretch to the Taylors farm. He found the walk pleasant as it gave him time to set his thoughts on what was about to occur between him and Emelia, he realised whilst he was walking they would have to be careful as an unwanted pregnancy was the last thing he needed. When he reached the farm he walked to the barn that was furthest from the farm yard which is where he had been instructed to meet Emelia,

"Hello handsome" came Emelia's silky seductive voice as she approached Thomas in a confident strut wearing a red night dress,

"Aren't you cold?" asked Thomas, concerned about Emelia's lack of clothing,

"I'll soon warm up" she flirted before pushing Thomas against the barn door and joining their mouths, Thomas was powerless in the kiss with Emelia dominating, her tongue sliding into Thomas mouth, kissing him roughly like there was no tomorrow, Emelia then slid her hands down Thomas' front and un-tucked his shirt, sliding her hand into his trousers and fondling his penis, Thomas groaned at the unfamiliar but pleasant sensation,

"Good?" she asked teasingly,

"Hmmm good" replied Thomas in a slight moan,

Emelia then pulled down Thomas with swift expert technique suggesting experience, she then got down on her knees and began to tease Thomas' penis with her tongue, before he knew it she had taken every inch of his cock into her mouth, she sucked hungrily, Thomas couldn't deny that the feeling was magnificent but there was something about it to him that didn't feel quite right this however did not stop him crying out in pleasure and coming deep into Emelia's mouth, she swallowed before getting up and kissing Thomas fiercely,

"Thomas are you a virgin?" she asked, a knowing tone to her voice,

He nodded,

"Take me then, please" she begged

"We don't need to do this Emelia," spoke Thomas attempting to win himself a chance of escape.

"No Thomas…! I want this; I have wanted you for so long, you don't know what you do to me. You drive me crazy"

"Oh" said Thomas in a shocked tone, whilst Emelia grabbed him by his fore arms and led him over to the hay. She instructed him to remove the rest of his clothes before pushing him softly down onto the hay whilst she removed her night dress, revealing a curvaceous, beautiful tanned body.

Thomas was mesmerized and sat with his mouth slightly agape, Emelia smiled at this and straddled the young lad,

"Touch me Thomas, put you hands on me" she insisted and Thomas obeyed, making tentative touches at her breasts which she seemed to enjoy,

"Can we stand up the hay's itchy?" asked Thomas,

"Yeah sure"

Thomas wrapped his arms round Emelia's waist, he was hard again and she wrapped her legs round his body, he backed her against the wall so she could lean on something and began thrusting into the wanton young woman who was in immense pleasure and making satisfied moans at regular intervals. She flung her head back against the wall and shouted

"Oh fuck Thomas yes",

Thomas replied "Emelia I think I'm going to…."

"Pull out Thomas" she instructed,

Thomas followed her instruction and pulled out releasing all over Emelia's torso which was decidedly better than inside her

"Thank you Thomas, not bad for a virgin" said Emelia,

Thomas smiled before grabbing his clothes and pulling them on,

"You don't have to go so soon" Emelia said,

"My dad will worry if he knows I'm not back" replied Thomas,

"Sure. See you on Monday then handsome"

"Sure you will" Thomas answered unenthusiastically,

Whilst Thomas and Emelia were together in the barn, Alfie was sat alone in his bedroom, he hated this house, the memories that haunted him. When his mum had died when he was 9 years old he had been sent here for the summer while his father was busy on the farm. That was the year it began, that was the year John Taylor had began abusing him, mentally, physically and worst of all sexually. He remembered the first time John had began sexually abusing him, he had laid the sheaves east to west rather than north to south as instructed and John had gone ballistic, he remembered being sent to bed with no supper by John and he remembered while he was lying in bed going to sleep hearing footsteps on the landing, they got louder and louder until eventually they were in his bedroom, he could still feel the warm prickly breath on his neck and then the covers and his pyjamas bottoms being torn from him. He pretended he was sleeping right the way through making sure not even to breathe loudly, he didn't want John to think he was enjoying it when really it was the most painful experience of his life and he remembered when it was all over curling up in a ball, feeling dirty and sobbing himself to sleep. Alfie realised that all the men is his life: lover, friends or family had all hurt him one way or another, his father drank a lot and on occasion still got a little handy with his fists towards Alfie, John had abused him for the majority of his childhood yet he couldn't tell anyone because they would think that was why he was the way he was because they might think he enjoyed it or was glad that it happened, his only two male lovers had both turned their back on him when things got difficult, when they had been tired of the stress of a secret relationship or his reluctance to try anal sex due to the obvious reason of his childhood abuse, and now the lad that he was in love with was out in the barn fucking his cousin. He really did love Thomas but had no idea how to tell the boy, he didn't want to frighten him off as they were such close friends.

Whilst Thomas walked home in the pitch dark, he began to cry. This encounter with Emelia hadn't been what he had hoped for. He had thought that he really liked Emelia in a romantic way but now he wasn't so sure, she didn't really do it for him. He couldn't deny her beauty or the fact that she had turned him on but he didn't feel love for her and he so wanted to love someone and feel equally loved but as far as he could see Emelia was simply interested in him and other men for the simple reason of sex and had no interest of love, which to Thomas was what sex was all about, although he had little experience in either field he had always grown up believing that when you love someone you have sex with them to express that love and he knew that next time he was intimate with someone he would prefer it to be with somebody he loved.

**Review please :)**


	7. Chapter 7

The next morning Alfie awoke with a thumping headache having barely slept the previous night due to sobbing uncontrollably, all through the night all he could picture in his head was Thomas and his loose cousin Emelia, naked in the barn. Thomas drove him crazy and he realised fairly soon after meeting him that he was falling in love with the young lad, however he just couldn't for the life of him work Thomas or his sexuality out, he flirted with him regularly, touched him regularly and they had even danced together, all of which Thomas had seemed most comfortable with but Alfie thought that if Thomas had any interest in him, why would he have continued to pursue Emelia. The young lad was a mystery to him but that didn't stop his heart beating faster every time Thomas was near,

"Morning Alfie" said Thomas as he stepped into the barn,

"Alright Thommy?" said Alfie with a wink, Thomas loved it when Alfie called him Thommy, he seemed to be the only one aside from his father and Emelia (when she was trying to get in his pants) that did and Thomas found it endearing,

"Not bad, you?" replied Thomas, sitting down on a bale opposite to Alfie, he noticed the red rims around his eyes as if he'd been crying,

"Fine and dandy" Alfie answered,

"Are you sure? You look upset" said Thomas,

"I'm fine I promise" assured Alfie, grateful of Thomas' concern, "Just a slight headache"

"Oh well stay there then" said Thomas walking over to Alfie and placing his hands in his hair,

"What are you doing?" asked Alfie curiously,

"Head massage, it'll make it feel a bit better" said Thomas rubbing the temples of Alfie's head, Alfie revelled in the touch of Thomas' soft hands against his skin, Thomas then moved his hands down to the nape of Alfie's neck and began pressing softly, it was a pleasant pain relief,

"Where'd you learn this?" asked Alfie,  
"My mother" replied Thomas as he replaced his hands in Alfie's lush blonde hair, rubbing at his scalp tentatively

"It's lovely, thank you Thomas" said Alfie,

"It's ok" said Thomas as he took a seat on the bale next to Alfie, they were side by side and Alfie could feel the warmth of Thomas' body rushing through his own,

"So how did last night go then? With Emelia" asked Alfie, hoping that the answer would be "dreadful" but expecting the opposite,

"This sounds odd but I didn't really enjoy it" said Thomas solemnly,

Alfie felt as though his heart was going to burst right out with happiness, Thomas continued "I didn't really feel anything" he admitted, blushing slightly,

Alfie moved his face closer to Thomas and gazed into those piercing blue eyes before saying softly" what do you feel now?" before closing the gap between their faces and bringing his lips to Thomas, Thomas was surprised, he had not expected this and had never thought kissing a boy would be nice but Alfie's lips were warm and soft and felt good against his own, Alfie pulled back from the kiss,

"Sorry Thomas, but I've wanted to do that ever since I first met you" said Alfie, a look of genuine fear that Thomas would be angry,

"You wanted to kiss me?" asked Thomas softly in an unconfident tone, washing a wave of relief over Alfie when he saw the look in Thomas' eyes was not of anger but of confusion,

"Don't sound so surprised you're beautiful" said Alfie romantically,

"You think I'm beautiful?"

"Course I do" said Alfie genuinely,

"Isn't it wrong to think that other men are beautiful?" asked Thomas, although he was genuinely touched by Alfie's compliment and found his heart beating a little faster

"Who are we to say its wrong, I don't think there's anything wrong with it" stated Alfie,  
"What are you saying?" asked Thomas,

"I like you and I know you're only young and you're probably disgusted by what I've done but…"  
"I'm not disgusted" objected Thomas, "I was just shocked, I thought you were…normal"  
"Normal?" said Alfie looking extremely hurt,

"That's not what I meant" stressed Thomas,

"Where does this leave us? Are we still friends?"  
"I think so, please give me some space. Can you tell Ted I've taken ill and gone home" said Thomas hurrying from the barn, he was so confused, he couldn't deny to himself that he had always found Alfie extremely handsome and had sometimes had trouble understanding if their friendship was solely that by now Alfie had really gone and blurred the boundaries and Thomas wasn't sure how he felt. Why did Alfie's lips have to feel so good against his own? He didn't know that men could be more than friends, of course he'd heard of such things however they were always spoke about as evil and unnatural but there was nothing at all that felt unnatural about Alfie's lips and his own touching and the fact that it felt so right in part explained why he and Emelia felt so wrong together.

**Review please :)**


	8. Chapter 8

Thomas didn't turn up to the farm the next morning an Alfie was terrified that he had deeply disgusted Thomas and that they were no longer friends. He had however made a decision about his future, he had decided that he would be moving out of the farm due to being increasingly infuriated by John's intimidating presence so decided to find himself a little place in the village. He approached his cousin to ask for the morning off,

"Ted, I know it's a bit inconvenient considering Thomas isn't here either but could I have this morning off?" he asked hopefully,

"Why isn't Thomas here? Asked Ted curiously,

"Erm…" hesitated Alfie,

"Have you two had a falling out?" Ted quizzed softly,

"I did something stupid Ted…and disgusting" said Alfie,

"I'm sure it can't be that bad, what was it?"

"I kissed him" admitted Alfie with an ashamed and worried look on his handsome face,

"You did what? Why? I thought he was seeing our Emelia" said Ted in a shocked but surprisingly tolerant tone,

"He is but I don't know Ted…I know you shouldn't feel like that about men but I really like him"

"Bloody hell, you're lucky I'm so liberal" said Ted jovially. In all honestly he was shocked by his cousins revelation but had always been a tolerant soul he didn't judge people for factors beyond their control,

"You don't mind?" asked Alfie,

"Why would I? Who you fancy is your affair not mine…be careful though Alf, not many are as liberal thinking as myself" warned Ted,

"What about Emelia?" asked Alfie,

"Don't worry about my sister, from what I've heard she's a right little tart and has been with half the locals, I'm sure she'll move on from Thomas sooner or later. How did Thomas react?" Ted wasn't very keen on his sister, he knew she could be manipulative and a spoilt brat and it disgusted him to hear that she was the village bike so personally he thought Thomas could do better anyway,

"I think he was just shocked and he seemed very confused. I hated it Ted, he means so much to me and I've frightened him off" said Alfie with tears beginning to form in his eyes. He couldn't believe how much a lad he had met barely months ago had had such a profound effect on him,  
"You don't know that Alf, he's maybe just getting his head round it. Do you love him?" asked Ted softly, realising he probably already knew the answer to his question,

"I think so yeah" Alfie answered honestly,

"God!" sighed Ted, "Anyway yes you can have this morning off, you'll have to work this afternoon mind" said Ted gently,

"Thanks Ted, by the way you won't tell anyone…will you?"

"Course I won't. Your secrets safe as houses with me, I promise" reassured Ted,

"Thank you I best be going"

"See you later Alfie" said Ted waving goodbye to his younger cousin as he set off walking out of the yard.

When he reached the village Alfie found the cottage that had taken his fancy, it was small and was reasonably cheap to rent at £2 a month. He had quite a bit of money put by from when his grandfather who was pretty wealthy died and left a large sum to Alfie who was always his golden grandchild. The cottage was owned by a local farmer who Alfie knew from the pub so he walked up to the farm. The owner was a friendly bloke who was in his fifties and had a beer belly and smiley ruddy face, Alfie knocked boldly on the front door of the farm house. The door soon swung open,

"Alright Alfie lad, what can I do for you? asked the farmer in his thick Yorkshire accent,

"Well I was wondering if I'd be able to rent the cottage of yours in the village" said Alfie,

"I don't see why not. You're not enjoying living with the Taylors then?"

"It's alright but I like my independence you see"

"I do indeed lad, well I'd be honoured to let you rent it, £2 a month alright aye lad"

"That's fine, thank you"

"Thank you lad, I'll get the place a bit more lovable for you and you can move in next week" he smiled kindly,

"Thanks so much" replied Alfie, turning and waving before heading back to the Taylor's farm. When he reached the farm he was overwhelmingly relieved to see Thomas, brush in hand sweeping the yard, at least now he would finally be able to apologise to Thomas properly. He nodded to Thomas and signalled for him to come over to the barn, Thomas realised the gesture and followed Alfie across the yard,

"I'm so sorry about yesterday Thomas, I took advantage of you, It was wrong of me, very wrong" apologised Alfie genuinely,

"It's ok" said Thomas, staring at his feet wanting to avoid the loving gaze of Alfie that he knew would make him blush,

"No Thomas it's not okay, you're so young, what was I thinking? I mean you're fourteen for God's sake" Alfie cursed,

"I'm fifteen in a month" protested Thomas,

"That doesn't make what I did any better Thomas" said Alfie full of guilt for confusing the young lad,

"Don't be so hard on yourself Alfie, I over reacted"

"No you didn't Thomas, you were great about it" said Alfie, flattered that Thomas was being so understanding,

"Why did you do it? Do you fancy me?" asked Thomas,

"Yeah I do but it's more than that Thomas, I've got so many feelings for you"

"I know its wrong and I'm not queer but I like you too…I think" stated Thomas nervously finally looking up to meet Alfie's stunning gaze,

"I know you're not like me and I don't ask you to be and I know you're very young and you don't love me but please just let me love you Thomas, you don't have to give me anything in return".

"Maybe I want to….no I do want to" Thomas corrected himself,

"Do you mean that?" asked Alfie, his voice full of uncertainty

Thomas reached for Alfie's hands and threaded their fingers through each others,

"I do mean it Alfie I really do" said Thomas before they quickly mixed away from each other when they heard footsteps approaching from the yard.

**Hope this chapter was ok, review please :)**


	9. Chapter 9

It was a freezing cold January and temperatures were very low, the snow was settling across the village, dusting the roof with white powdery snow creating a picturesque scene, but unfortunately as the temperatures plummeted so did Jacks health. His cough, as Thomas had feared had developed into something more sinister and the freezing temperature did nothing to help, Jack developed tuberculosis and became very sick. As he lay in his bed, cover wrapped tight around him only his face showing, with a bucket for the blood he coughed by his bedside, Thomas could feel the familiar unpleasant sensation creeping up on him like it had done 6 years ago, the feeling that he about to lose a parent. Jack looked dreadful his eyes were sunken and circled by dark bags; his skin looked sallow and feverish instead of his normal swarthy glow covered in droplets of sweat that Thomas continued to dab with a cool, damp cloth. Thomas was now finished school as he was soon to turn 15 so spent a lot of time at home anyway but he decided to take time away from his job at the Taylors farm as to watch over his ailing father. He knew deep down that it was probably for the best, even though he and Alfie had cleared the air and confessed to having feelings for one another, they hadn't yet acted on those feelings and things were still slightly awkward between them after that first stolen kiss.

Thomas ordered his father to bed rest everyday, he did a fine job of keeping the clock shop literally ticking over and in the evenings he would sit with his father and take care of him. The doctor visited one evening and the expressions worried Thomas deeply, the way the doctor looked over his father anxiously was when Thomas realised he would most probably lose his father. Over the next few weeks Jack's health continues to decline, worsening by the day until one night it was too late, Thomas sat with him and they talked for hours as though Jack knew that the end as near,

"I want you to promise me son that no matter what happens in life you'll do whatever makes you happy"

"I don't…." replied Thomas, not fully understanding his father's request,

"Well make sure that you be who you want to be not who others tell you to be"

"I promise dad"

"You've made me proud son, I love you I really do"

"Don't talk like it's the end dad, please"

"I love you son" said Jack kissing Thomas hand softly,

"I love you too Dad" replied Thomas throwing his arms round Jack and giving him a warm embrace, it horrified Thomas how scrawny and bony his father had become,

"Good night father" said Thomas as he left his dad's room and went to his own bedroom, falling asleep easily despite all his troubles.

During the night, Jacks infection eroded a blood vessel and blood began spewing from his nose and mouth as he slept, soaking the crisp white bed sheets and staining them scarlet. When Thomas awoke and entered his fathers room, he almost collapsed at the sight, Jack was stone cold and completely lifeless,, Thomas was relieved to see he looked peaceful aside of course from the many litres of blood surrounding him. Thomas gave his father one last embrace for his own comfort if anything, before pulling the white and blood stained sheet over his face. He didn't want to leave Jack but knew he had to find someone to have the body removed from the house, so made a dash into the village to the local funeral parlour; he showed them to his house and then sobbed uncontrollably as he said his goodbyes to Jack. They took him in the hearse which was pulled by two black horses and Thomas was left alone saving for a few other mourners who knew Jack quite well. In the afternoon a man dressed in a black suit and top hat showed up at the front door,

"Can I help you sir?" asked Thomas politely although really not in the mood for visitors,

"Yes, I'm Mr Jackson, your father's solicitor, I wonder if I might come in"

Thomas didn't know how else to respond so nodded solemnly.

He and the solicit took a seat, opposite from each other at the kitchen table as the solicitor took out his papers and files,

"Mr Barrow, your father's shop was once your grand fathers shop" explained the solicitor slowly,

"Yes I know" replied Thomas,

"Well, your father has a brother, Michael Barrow; he lives in Leeds I believe. Anyway the thing is that your grandfather left his shop to your father but in case anything happened to your father he made sure the shop would fall into your uncle's ownership, so the top and bottom of it is, Michael Barrow owns the shop. You're father has of course left you some money, and he stated in his will that Michael as your godfather will be your guardian"

Thomas had no other reaction but to nod, he was tired and sad and confused and had never felt so lonely in his life.

"Michael is younger than your father was he's 29, not married, he had one child, a boy, he died young in a terrible accident. He like your father is a clockmaker; however he is employed by someone else so I rather see him jumping at this opportunity which is better for you because you could stay in the area"

"What sort of accident?" asked Thomas, his curious side getting the better of him,

"He was playing with some other village children near a well, he drowned and his body was never recovered. The shock of it ruined your uncle's relationship; they blamed each other so he and his wife parted"

"That's very sad" said Thomas, feeling sympathy for his uncle who he hadn't seen since his christening,

"I'm very sorry if this is a shock to you Mr Barrow, I know what you're going through is the most dreadful thing"

"Do you?"

"I do, I lost my wife last year to the same disease, I'm terribly sorry for your loss. I will contact your uncle and we will see how he wants to go about things"

"Ok, oh and I'm sorry about your wife" said Thomas choking back a sob, he couldn't believe how terrible a disease it was to have taken both his parents form him,

"My advice to you Mr Barrow is let yourself grieve, there's nothing worse than bottling it all up, talk to somebody, it helps"

"I'll try" sobbed Thomas,

"Would you like me to keep you company for a while?" asked the solicitor kindly,

"No, I'd prefer to be alone but thank you"  
"Good day Mr Barrow" said the solicitor tipping his top hat,

"Good day sir"

"When the door shut Thomas curled into a ball and lay on the floor sobbing, eventually falling asleep.

**Review Please :)**


	10. Chapter 10

Thomas was waken by a knocking at the front door early in the morning, he had not moved from the place where he lay sobbing the previous night and his body was achy and tired. He expected to be faced with his mystery uncle at the door but instead it was a pleasant surprise when he opened the door and discovered it was actually Alfie at the doorstep, he was holding flowers in one hand and a box of Turkish Delight in the other which was Thomas' favourite,

"Can I come in?" asked Alfie politely, a hopeful half smile on his otherwise serious face,

"Yeah course" replied Thomas, his expression equally solemn,

Alfie stepped through into the warmth of Thomas' humble house and closed the door behind him, he backed himself against a wall of the hallway and rested against it,

"Thomas, I heard about your dad, I'm so sorry" said Alfie sympathetically,

Thomas burst into tears, his eyes already red from sobbing and his face blotchy, Alfie could see the vulnerability etched all over the young man,

"Oh Thomas, come here" commanded Alfie softly, holding out his arms to the broken lad, Thomas approached him and fell into his arms, revelling in the warmth Alfie gave him, it felt good to hold someone, it felt comforting,

"I've got nobody left Alfie, they've both gone now" cried Thomas, tears streaming down his faces relentlessly, leaving red, salty tracks. He then buried his face into Alfie's strong shoulders to hide his tears, he snuffled against Alfie's neck as Alfie patted and stroked his back in soothing motions,

"You've got me Thomas, I will…" he kissed Thomas ebony hair, "…never leave you" he finished, Alfie had began to sob himself at seeing the lad he loved in such terrible distress and grief,

"Promise me Alfie, you're all I've got" pleaded Thomas,

"I promise, I'll look after you Thomas, you will never have to feel alone again"

Thomas continued sobbing against Alfie, whose cotton shirt had become sodden on the shoulder area. Alfie still with his face buried in Thomas' luscious hair,

"I'll take you up the farm Thomas; we'll get you a good meal aye"

"I can't, what about Emelia?"

"What about her?"

"Well I don't love her do I and she still thinks I do"

"You don't need to worry about that now, come on lets go aye"

They walked to 3 mile stretch side by side, Alfie's arm wrapped round Thomas shoulder in a bid to comfort him,

"Thank you Alfie"

"What for ?"

"The flowers and the Turkish Delight, everything really. You cared enough to come and see how I was, Emelia didn't"

"It's nothing. I hate to tell you his Thomas but I've a funny feeling Emelia wanted you for one thing and one thing only"  
"Doesn't everyone?" asked Thomas, a mixture of ignorance and naivety to his voice,

"Not me" declared Alfie, pulling Thomas in closer and looking down to his face and smiling,

"I'm glad" replied Thomas, lightly smiling back despite his sombre mood.

They reached the house and went in through the front door, Alfie leading the way,

Thomas following looking incredibly nervous,

"Oh Thomas sweetheart, I'm so so sorry for your loss" said Mrs Taylor sympathetically, "Come here love" she said kindly, holding out her arm to him and smothering him in a warm motherly hug which felt unfamiliar but pleasant,, that was one thing he always missed about his mother, her cuddles. He wrapped his arms round Mrs Taylor's waist and nestled into her hug. He eventually let go and smiled at the kind farmer's wife.

"I'm sorry Thomas, how dreadful for you" came Emelia's voice from the table, before standing up and attempting to plant a kiss on his lips, Thomas pushed her back,

"Don't Emelia, I'm not in the mood" he warned, "I'm really sorry but I think it's best in general if we end this here anyway, I'm not in a great place at the moment"

"I understand" she said, throwing her arms around him and whispering into his ear, "You were a good fuck, handsome" Thomas was gobsmacked so moved away from Emelia and took a seat next to Alfie at the table, who placed a comforting hand on Thomas' knee, and said softly "you're doing great"

Ted also chimed up with his condolences and patted Thomas comfortingly on the back. John Taylor was nowhere to be seen which suited Thomas perfectly, Thomas supposed he was probably lazing about in bed some where, Mrs Taylor came to the table and served them a warm, hearty beef stew and Thomas couldn't help but stare as he noticed a dark bruising under her right eye as her hair that didn't usually fall on her face anyway moved slightly, he hadn't noticed it earlier but then again he hadn't looked and obviously she had tried to disguise it with her hair, it looked sore and he wondered how she could have done it but then his mind wandered back to the time when Alfie flinched when Ted mentioned John beating him then it suddenly dawned on him that it could have been John that had hit his wife.

**Review Please :)**


	11. Chapter 11

**Don't know if this story is any good or not so would appreciate some reviews please :)**

The next morning Thomas was again awoke by knocking, Thomas ran down the stairs to the front door and swung back the door, this time as expected it was his little known uncle, Mr Michael Barrow. He was tall and slender and like Thomas had dark hair though his was a few shades lighter than Thomas' ebony colour, he had the same swarthy skin tone as Jack had had, his eyes were also the same sparkly green as Jack's were, his nose was slender and petite like Thomas and his lips full and rosy. His green eyes were kind and had laughter lines at the corners which Thomas thought unusual for a man of his age. Thomas had expected him to be a scruffy looking but was pleasantly surprised to see he was dressed smartly in a dark suit and wearing a flat cap and carrying a large suitcase, He also had cheekbones that jutted out and a slender face, even though had always Thomas looked very much like his mother he couldn't deny that there were striking similarities between him and his uncle, which meant he couldn't help but stare,

"Hello Thomas, I'm your uncle Michael" said the man; his voice had a thick Yorkshire accent and a slight gravelly tone. He held out his hand for Thomas to shake, Thomas shook his hand and replied,

"Yes I guessed. Come in"

Michael followed him through the door which led to the clock shop and gazed around in wonder,

"God this takes me back, I remember me and your dad we spent hours in here as kids. I'm sorry Thomas, about your father, there's nothing so wrong as when young folk die" stated Michael, sentimentality and sorrow in his tone,

"Were you close?" asked Thomas,

"As kids we were very close, best friends but then we grew up and I moved away, things are different when you're older" explained Michael,

"Dad used to mention you sometimes; he said that I would have liked you"

"That's kind, Thomas I'm very sorry it's came to all this"

"Came to all what?"

"You having to live with an uncle you don't know from Adam, I know it can't be easy for you, God knows it was difficult when my mother died but I had your dad as my brother, I wasn't alone"

"I'm not alone, I have my friend Alfie and I've got you now as well. What about when your dad died?"

"Can't say I cared much, he was a bastard to me and your dad. Anyway if we're going to be living together I think we should get to know each other a little, let's go upstairs have some tea and tell each other about ourselves aye"

Thomas nodded and then led the way up the stairs to the living area of the building, he went into the kitchen and put the kettle on the stove, Michael took a seat at the table,

"If you don't mind me saying so lad, you've got a look of me" he said,

"I thought that too" laughed Thomas,

"Funny that, you look more like your mum did though"

"Dad always says…said that" said Thomas, correcting himself mid sentence,

"I am terribly sorry for your loss Thomas, genuinely I am, I know what it's like to lose someone so suddenly and tragically, I lost a son, 2 years ago now"

"The solicitor mentioned that, I'm sorry, what was his name?" asked Thomas,

"Edmund, his name was Edmund" replied his uncle whose eyes were beginning to fill with tears,

Thomas didn't now how to reply as he saw his uncles distress growing as he attempted to fight back his tears,

"Don't suppose you've anything stronger than tea" asked Michael,

"There's whiskey or gin" offered Thomas,

"Aye, fetch me a whiskey eh lad"

Thomas nodded and took out to glasses and generously filled them halfway, he took them to the table and took a seat opposite his uncle who was now crying,

"Thanks boy" muttered Michael,

Thomas again nodded and took a swig of his whiskey,

"Life's so shit Thomas" said Michael as he stared down at the oak table,

"I know, trust me mines not great either"

"I understand that, it's just I miss my boy Thomas and I just want to be happy but my wife left me because of our boy" sobbed Michael as he knocked back his whiskey, he indicated to Thomas that he should refill the glass so Thomas obliged,

"Did she blame you?" asked Thomas tentatively,

Michael nodded "That bitch, I was at work how could it be my fault?" he asked, not directly to anyone but in a bid to reassure himself he was not responsible,

"It's not your fault, it wasn't anyone's fault, it was an accident" Thomas said kindly,

"She said it was my fault for not being strict enough, for not telling him to stay away form those woods. He was only playing for fucks sake"

"Don't blame yourself, it won't do any good"

"I'm so sorry boy, I'm supposed to be looking after you and comforting you and instead I'm wallowing in my own self pity"

"It's alright uncle, you're still grieving for your son, I still grieve for my Mam sometimes"

"I'll shut up about it now" Michael said with a slight slur, pressing his finger to his lips, "shhhh". "You seem to have a wise head on your young shoulders Thomas"

"Thanks"

"How old are you?" asked Michael,

"15, I've left school, I work at a farm a few miles away"

"Good lad, it's good to earn even when you're young. Have you ever been in to clock making or not?" asked Michael,

"Yes I used to help dad, so don't worry if you ever are too busy I'll give you a hand in the shop"

Michael smiled and the lines by his eyes deepened, "So boy, you can't be all work and no play, what do you do for fun around here?"

"I've been to the pub a couple of times with my friend Alfie"  
"Is he your best friend Thomas?"

"Well I had others when I was at school but I don't see them now really so yes he is"

"Shame. You would have got on well with my lad Thomas; sorry I said I'd stop didn't I? So what's he like then, this Alfie?"

"Nice lad, he's from Cornwall, he's the boss' nephew"

"Who did you say you worked for Thomas?" asked Michael, a worried and curious expression etched on his face,

"I didn't, but his name's John, John Taylor"  
"And he's alright with you is he?" asked Michael, concerned about the welfare of his new found nephew,

"I don't see a lot of him. Why?" asked Thomas,

"I don't know if I should tell you Thomas" replied Michael,

"What is it? Please tell me" begged Thomas,

"Thomas…when I was your age, there was… rumours round the village that…he was a pervert… with young lads" he said reluctantly,  
"What?" exclaimed Thomas,

"Yeah, he touched them and raped them and stuff…it might just be rumours Thomas, but I always found him sinister"

"Why didn't dad tell me about this?" said Thomas, worried that his dad had known all the while that he'd worked under the authority of a pervert,

"He didn't know, I only knew 'cause I was listening in on a conversation I shouldn't have between my dad and a neighbour, the neighbours boy had said John had attacked him and dad always told us to keep away from him, he didn't say why but I knew"

"Why didn't he get in trouble with the police?" asked Thomas, disgusted by the revelation,

"Thomas, it was a little boy's word against a grown middle class man, with wealth and power, John had alibis, made up of course but alibis none the less" explained Michael,

Thomas was about to respond when suddenly his mind flashed back to his conversation about a month ago with Alfie "he'll take away their innocence" replaying in his mind again and again, he felt sick. "Oh God!" he exclaimed

"Thomas what's the matter, are you alright?"

"No I'm not, I'm sorry I've got to go somewhere, I'll be back later" he said standing up from the table in a hurry and grapping his jacket before running out of the front door and making his way to the Taylors' farm.


	12. Chapter 12

He picked up the pace as he ran to the Taylor's farm, beginning to break a sweat even though the air was chilly. He eventually reached the farm and began looking frantically for Alfie, searching the yard and sheds, finally finding him in the milking parlour having just finished milking the cows, he was hosing down his boots,

"ALFIE!" exclaimed Thomas from the door, making Alfie jump and turn round,

"Thomas what are you doing here love? You're supposed to be grieving at home" he asked concernedly for the young lad, who he saw looked tired and troubled,

"I need to talk to you. Now!" he replied hurriedly, "You better sit down"

"Oh ok, sounds ominous. Do you not want to see me anymore or something?" he asked, desperately hoping that wasn't what Thomas wanted to talk about, sitting down on top of an old wooden crate next to Thomas,

"No, of course not, but Alfie why didn't you tell me?" asked Thomas,

"Tell you what?" Alfie asked, not sure what Thomas was referring to,

"About John, did he rape you?" said Thomas bluntly, knowing there was no easy way to ask such a question but probably there was a more polite way than that,

"Who told you that?" said Alfie, feeling disgusting; he hadn't wanted Thomas to find out like this,

"No one, my uncle said that there were rumours when he was a kid that John did stuff to young boys and that stuff you said to me about taking away your innocence, I just put two and two together" explained Thomas, worried that Alfie would be angry with him,

"And got 4" Alfie said, confirming that Thomas hypothesis was correct,

Thomas placed his hands either side of Alfie's face and leant in to kiss him softly on the lips,

"You're not disgusted by me Thomas?" asked Alfie, shocked at Thomas kissing him,

"Not at all, he's the disgusting one, not you; I would never be disgusted by you Alf. When did it start?" he asked curiously,

"I was 9, just a little kid, I wasn't strong enough to fight him off or anything, you know. It was my punishment, I did the slightest thing wrong and he'd… sneak into my room at night and….you know" said Alfie, Thomas could hear the sounds of choked back tears in his voice,

Thomas felt sick, he couldn't handle the thought of someone hurting someone he cared for so much in this way, it made his stomach churn and his palms sweat,

"I'm so sorry Alfie" Thomas took Alfie's hands in his and stroked his thumbs tentatively along the backs of his slender, golden toned hands, Alfie looked at Thomas and began sobbing,

"I'm sorry Thomas, I wanted to tell you but I thought you would hate me. I'm not like this because of him, I didn't enjoy it or anything, its just coincidence" said Alfie, feeling like he had to explain that John hadn't made him the way he was,

"Of course it is, I understand that. What he did was unforgiveable, don't blame yourself" reassure Thomas,

Thomas gazed at Alfie, his twinkly green eyes were glistened by tears, his tanned skin was red under the eyes and blotchy around his plump red mouth, his floppy blond hair falling onto his face, Thomas was amazed at how someone could look so beautiful even though they were crying. Thomas reached up his hand to brush Alfie's hair from his face and pulled Alfie's head next to his chest, Alfie sobbed against him, making snuffled noises that Thomas found deeply endearing, Alfie clutched Thomas tightly as though he was holding on for dear life and could never let go, Thomas felt older than his years as he comforted the older man but didn't mind in the slightest.

"Your so good to me Thomas, so good"

"As are you to me" replied Thomas sincerely,

"I should be comforting you, how are you anyway baby?" Alfie muffled against Thomas' chest, in all honesty he was feeling wretched but having Alfie there to support him made the pain all a little easier to deal with,

"Do you fancy coming round to mine tonight Thomas? We'll do something together. I don't mean "like that" you know just like have a meal or something" offered Alfie,

"Yours?" questioned Thomas,

"Yeah, I moved out didn't I" declared Alfie,

"When was this?" asked Thomas, feeling quite excited as he knew it would mean he and Alfie could spend more time alone together,

"I moved in a few days ago because a few weeks ago I went to see the farmer that owns and he said he'd get the place sorted for me. I couldn't live here anymore, not with him around, he makes my skin crawl"

"Brilliant. What did you tell the Taylors?"

"I just said that I needed my own space, they were fine about it. Auntie Tess insisted I still eat dinner here though. The thing was Thomas, at night when I was trying to get to sleep, that's when it all came flooding back, the awful memories, I couldn't cope with it" Alfie explained,

"I know, but it'll be better now, you won't have to be reminded of it all the time. Anyway I'll have to go and see how my uncle is, he's very emotional. I'll see you tonight, which house is it?"

"He's alright with you is he? If you've got any problems, you know you can always come to me yeah. And it's Rose Cottage, its white and covered in ivy, you'll know the one. See you later 'ansum, do I get a kiss?" asked Alfie hopefully, Thomas approached him and planted a delicate but meaningful kiss on his lips and smiled against his mouth before saying goodbye and heading home.

When he arrived home he found his uncle Michael asleep in a chair, his head lolling on the kitchen table, he was pale and reeking of booze. Thomas looked to the sideboard of the kitchen and observed that Michael had consumed almost all of the remaining contents of the ¾ full whiskey bottle. He thought he should maybe make his drunken uncle but decided it would probably be easier just to leave the man in his drunken slumber. He left the kitchen and went to his room and read, the book he was reading was Jude the Obscure by Thomas Hardy, Thomas had only chosen it as the author shared his first name but he had begun to quite enjoy the book, it was a story of a poor stonemason's ill fated romance with his free spirited cousin, however he found the book to be slightly feministic but enjoyed it all the same. The hours seemed to fly by as he found himself lost in the book and it was soon six o'clock, so he changed into his white shirt, black trousers and waist coast, slicked back his hair and left his uncle a note on the side in the kitchen,

"Gone out, be back by morning. Go easy on the whiskey, it's pricey, plus we've got to see the vicar tomorrow about the funeral. Thomas"

He then headed out the door and set of to find Alfie's new cottage, he soon found it as it was only about a mile from his own house, the cottage looked pretty and quaint. He knocked on the front door softly and the door swung open only seconds later,

"Hello Thomas, come in my friend" greeted a smiling Alfie,

Thomas smiled back and stepped into the cottage, closing the door softly behind him, it was no palace but it was lovely and homely, the range emitting warmth throughout the house and the mismatched furniture adding a rustic feel,

"Make yourself at home" said Alfie as he walked into the kitchen, Thomas followed and took a seat at the table, "I hope you're hungry my lad"

"I am. Why, you been cooking"

"I have indeed, I thought because I'm Cornish I might as well make Cornish pasties, I hope you like them"

"I do, there great"

Alfie served them each a Cornish pasty before taking a seat opposite Thomas at the small dining table. They tucked into their meal and then chatted away, they talked about Thomas' father and the funeral, how their days and been and just general banter. When they were finished, Alfie led Thomas into the living room, Thomas looked around curiously, his eyes wandered to the sofa where a red drawing book lay,

"Property of Alfie George Winter, what's this?" asked Thomas, "I never knew your surname was Winter"

"There my drawings. Yes that's my surname?"

"So how are you related to the Taylors?"

"Auntie Tess and mum were sisters"

"I see. Do you mind if I have a look at your drawings?"

Alfie nodded although he looked uncertain, his drawings had always been very private and he had never, ever shown anyone, Thomas opened the book and stared in amazement and shock, the drawings were beautiful portraits of naked men, each one so fine in detail,

"These are…wow" said Thomas,

"Thanks, you're the first person I've ever let see them" replied Alfie, pleased that Thomas hadn't been disturbed by the images,

"Alfie?" said Thomas slowly,

"Yes Thomas, what is it?"

"I want you to draw me like that, like those men in you book, naked" admitted Thomas, blushing deep scarlet as he did so,

"You want me to draw you without your clothes on?"

"Well I dint just say it to be polite" retorted Thomas,

"no of course not" replied Alfie, shocked by the younger man's boldness,

"You can take them off if you like?" offered Thomas,

"I would like yes" smiled Alfie teasingly, moving closer to Thomas and removing his waistcoat, before taking on the task of undoing Thomas' fiddly shirt buttons, accidentally brushing against Thomas chest repeatedly as he did so, when the shirt was removed and Thomas was naked from the waist up, Alfie took a moment to step back and take in the delicious site before him,

"Oh Thomas, you're so beautiful" he said placing a soft wet kiss to Thomas collarbone, that made the ebony haired boys heart flip, Alfie resumed his undressing and fumbled with the buttons of Thomas' trousers, he then hooked his thumbs in Thomas underpants and trousers and took both of in one swift movement,

"Just go and lie over there, by the fire" he told Thomas,

Thomas positioned himself so he was comfortable and Alfie went to sit a few metres back from him, he then began to stare at Thomas features and Thomas could hear the soft scratching of the lead against the paper as Alfie began to roughly sketch out Thomas' body before adding more details later on. One some moments it was hard for Alfie to keep a professional front, particularly when his eyes had to roam Thomas' nether regions, Thomas say this and blushed deeply,

"Mr Barrow, may I ask why you're blushing?" asked Alfie in a mock posh accent, the result was the both of them giggling at each other before regaining focus,

When Alfie was finished he walk over and lay beside Thomas by the warm fire and showed him the picture,

"Wow, that's brilliant, you're so talented Alf" Thomas was right, the picture was fantastic, he had shaded t perfectly, adding emphasis on Thomas' high cheekbones and the muscle of his torso, it was perfect,

Alfie planted a kiss on Thomas head and cuddled up to him, placing his arm behind Thomas so Thomas' head could rest on him,

"You can stay tonight if you want Thomas, you don't have to go"

"Really?"

"Yes, you'll have to be out early in the morning mind" said Alfie thinking sensibly, it was probably the most sensible thing he'd done in while, after all entering a relationship with a 15 year old boy probably isn't the most sensible thing to do but he couldn't help the way he felt about Thomas and hoped that Thomas had the same burning desire for him in his heart,

"I will" smiled Thomas, Alfie scooped up the naked lad and his clothes in his arms and carried him to his bed, Thomas put on his underpants and Alfie stripped down to his and Thomas couldn't take his eyes off him as he did so and they climbed into bed and lay in each others arms and drifted of to sleep, neither of them having felt this happy in a long time,

**Longer than usual, hopefully this chapter was ok. Review please it means a lot :)**


	13. Chapter 13

Thomas slept easy through night, Alfie's long, slender arms wrapped round his lean waist. In the morning he woke and smiled to himself that Alfie had stayed in the same position all night, contently nuzzling against the back of Thomas' neck. Thomas rolled over and gazed at the young man, who didn't look 4 years Thomas' senior as he slept peacefully, Thomas revelled in the sight of his perfect features and the sound of his sleepy snuffles, Thomas leaned over and kissed him on the nose which awoke Alfie,

"Morning Beautiful" said Alfie, yawning whilst he stretched out his arms,

"Morning" replied Thomas, blushing lightly at Alfie's compliment. Alfie threw back the covers and got out of bed, "Where are you going?" asked Thomas,

"Surprise" replied Alfie, as he scurried to the kitchen leaving Thomas bewildered, however he soon returned with a tray full of breakfast for the two of them which consisted of scrambled eggs, fried potato cakes, bacon and a pot of tea,

"It's not much but it'll do" said Alfie, playing down the gesture,

"It's lovely, you didn't have to" said Thomas smiling at Alfie's kindness,

"I did, I'm a gentleman" said Alfie in his usual jovial tone,

"I know" smiled Thomas, as he pulled Alfie into a romantic embrace, Alfie hovering above Thomas' face and gazing lovingly into Thomas' deep blue eyes that resembled a stormy sky, his breath warm on Thomas' lips as there faces were barely an inc h apart, Thomas closed the gap in a reunion of mouths, taking Alfie by surprise as he slid his tongue along Alfie's lower lip because prodding it into his mouth, their tongues snaking round each other creating their fieriest kiss so far. Alfie ran his hands up the sides of Thomas' body, caressing the smooth ivory skin before feeling the younger man grow hard beneath. He quickly removed himself form on top of Thomas to be seated next to him on the narrow bed, citing the excuse "Breakfast will get cold". In his own mind that was not the true reason, the true reason was a fear he'd taken it to0 far, allowed himself to get lost and carried away in the beauty of the young boy and encouraging the boy to incite passion, he felt bad as it was as though he had rejected Thomas, but he knew he had stopped things there for the right reasons, he knew what it was like to have "those sort of relations", they were painful and he couldn't think of anything worse than inflicting pain on his beloved Thomas, but knowing that if Thomas had offered himself to him he probably wouldn't have been able to say no. He loved Thomas and wanted for them to express their love to each other but he believed Thomas to be too young and didn't want to feel as though he was taking advantage of Thomas age and naivety. He knew that Thomas didn't really have much knowledge of homosexual relationships and knew that was a imminent conversation they would have to have.

Thomas felt slightly miffed, he felt as though Alfie had rejected him but didn't think on it to much, instead he ate his breakfast and tried to think about his fathers funeral instead which was to be arranged today.

After half an hour, Thomas threw on his clothes and said goodbye to Alfie, their parting kiss was chaste and pure on Alfie's part more than Thomas' but Thomas tried not to think on it as he knew how much Alfie loved him so knew it wasn't because he was uninterested in Thomas.

Thomas arrived at the clock shop, heading upstairs to the living half of the building, he opened the door to discover that the house stunk of strong alcohol, there was no sign of Michael in the kitchen or living room so Thomas shouted for him,

"Uncle Michael, are you there?"

He heard a groan from his father's old room, before Michael stumbled through the bedroom door, his eyes were heavily bagged, his dark hair greasy and hanging into his eyes, his skin sallow and pale and his clothes stained and reeking of alcohol,

"Thomas, morning lad. Good night?" he said, a gravely quality to his weary voice,

"Yes great thank. Look you do know we're supposed to be seeing the vicar in an hour" said Thomas in a rather agitated tone,

"Keep your hair on you" said his uncle in a childish manner,

"Well you look awful" said Thomas rudely but truthfully, his uncle looked as though he was a homeless alcoholic.

"I couldn't sleep" replied his uncle,

"It smells like a brewery in here, I'm surprised all the alcohol you've drank didn't send you to sleep"

"I can handle my drink" retorted Michael; although clearly he couldn't as only a few seconds later he vomited all down the front of his white shirt,

"For god's sake" said Thomas, annoyed at his uncle incapability to act responsibly as the older man flopped to the floor, in a hung over mess.

An hour later after Michael had reluctantly scrubbed up and partially sobered up, they walked into the village and met with the vicar, they discussed the funeral and plans and picked out thing for Jacks funeral, an exercise which Thomas had found deeply upsetting. Michael also couldn't hold back his tears as it dawned on him that in a few days time, his brother would be put into a box, lowered into the ground and not seen ever again.

**Sorry if this chapter is slightly pointless.**

**Review please :)**


	14. Chapter 14

3 days later was the day of the funeral, Thomas woke early and began to get ready for the ceremony, as he stood scrubbing his body clean he couldn't help but stare at his reflection in the mirror, all he saw was a lanky, thin black haired lad that was average looking and hadn't even begun to look manly yet. He couldn't see what it was Alfie saw in him, for when he looked he did not see his ivory skin as beautiful, his raven hair as luscious or his high cheekbones as striking. He decided not to think on it fo any longer and began to dress himself in his black suit, with a white shirt and a black waistcoat. He sat on the edge of his bed and polished his black shoes, shining them to perfection, they could've almost acted as a mirror. He slicked his thick dark hair back against his head, which made him look dashing. He couldn't help but gaze in the mirror again, not for Alfie related reasons this time but instead to see if he shared any likenesses to his father in appearance, sadly he found he barely did aside from their shared nose shape and curved upper lip. Michael popped his head round the door, seeming pretty alert for so early in the morning,

"You alright boy?" he said softly, noticing Thomas' sad expression,

"No" confessed Thomas before bursting into tears, Michael held out his arms to him and Thomas relaxed into them, although Michael kept him at arms length it felt comforting all the same, as he cried against the upper part of Michael jacket sleeves, his uncle said softly, "you big softy, you're making me jacket wet"

"I'm sorry" said Thomas sounding guilty

"Thomas I was only kidding" said Michael bringing Thomas' head up to look him in the face, the boy looked so vulnerable, the red rimmed eyes, tear stained cheeks and plump blotchy lips reminded him all to much of himself when his mother had died. He felt an overwhelming duty of protection for the boy, as if by comforting Thomas he was comforting the boy he once was. He felt this was his second shot at being a father and so he wrapped his arms round Thomas tighter and pulled him close, comforting the boy and whispering soothingly. There was then the noise of a car pulling up outside and Michael pulled back noticing the hearse outside the window,

"We best go to church then lad" said Michael. Thomas nodded and began to walk downstairs and out the door, side by side with his unusually sober uncle. Michael didn't fail to disappoint however, grabbing the whiskey bottle from the shop desk when they reached the bottom of the stairs,

"One for the road" he suggested, pointing the bottle towards Thomas in a gesture for him to drink. Thomas popped out the cork and took a good few glugs of the amber liquid, it burnt his throat as it glided down but made him feel warm inside. He took a few more, enjoying the sensation of the whiskey that was 40% alcohol, before his uncle produced a smaller bottle from inside of his suit jacket, attempting to take a discreet sip of the clear liquid,

"What's that?" asked Thomas,

"Water" answered his uncle,

"I wasn't born yesterday" replied Thomas, feeling rather annoyed that his uncle had tried to insult his intelligence in such a way,

"This my boy is poitin" Michael announced proudly as though he has holding liquid gold,

"Poitin?"

"Irish stuff, 75% this is" explained Michael, handing the little bottle to Thomas,

"Lethal" said Thomas jovially, before wearily taking a glug and wincing, "eurgh, that's strong"

"You don't say" replied Michael sarcastically before he headed out of the door, Thomas followed quickly behind and they walked alongside the hearse to the church.

There were many people lining the streets that knew Jack, this touched Thomas to see so many familiar faces joining him in the mourning of his father, they were dressed in black and many people nodded solemnly at him as if to say "we're here for you lad, we know what you're going through".

When Thomas arrived at church, he was relieved to see Alfie sat a few rows from the front sat side by side with Ted and Tess Taylor, Emelia squashed in at the other end of the pew next to John who's grumpy expression could've turned milk sour, it was clear he had been forced to attend by his long suffering wife, who gave Thomas a soft supportive smile whilst Alfie threw him a discreet wink, Thomas smiling back at them both before taking his seat at the front beside his uncle Michael.

After a while of everyone getting settled into their pews and the coffin being placed at the front, the vicar began his ceremony, starting off with a few sad hymns before going on to read a passage from the Bible, and basically preaching of God's benevolence and power, something which made Thomas angry. Coupled with the fact that he had consumed quite a large doe of alcohol less than an hour ago, he couldn't help himself but interrupt by shouting "If your God's so fucking loving then why did he take my dad!", his outburst shocked everyone, made obviously everyone in the church inhaling deeply in astonishment. He ran outside of the church, Alfie standing up from his seat,

"Thomas wait" he pleaded but Thomas was already nearly out of the door, Alfie ran after him and the boy collapsed into his arms. He was so consumed with grief he felt numb and today had made it worse, knowing his father would be boxed in six feet under, never to be seen again hurt unimaginably. Alfie rubbed soothing circles into Thomas' back and stroked the side of his face with his thumb delicately, he whispered into Thomas' ear, "Look at me" Thomas kept his head buried against Alfie's chest,

"Thomas, look at me" repeated Alfie, more stern this time, Thomas raised his head,

"Listen to me Thomas, I want you to go in there and show everyone how strong I know you are. I want you to tell them all the wonderful things about your dad and what he meant to you. You make him proud baby" said Alfie, softly but encouragingly,

Thomas nodded,

"You can do it you know, you're strong" he said patting Thomas on the back.

Alfie was right, Thomas knew his dad wouldn't want him to sit around crying and moping because he was strong and he wanted to make his dad proud. Alfie put his arm round Thomas shoulder, kissed the top of his head and walked him back in to the church,

"Wait there" he said to Thomas, before waling up to the front of the church and pulling the vicar to one side,

"I wonder if Thomas would be able to say something about his dad. I 'm sorry about his outburst, he's just very upset"

"I understand that but he must allow God's love to help him, but yes I don't see why he shouldn't say a few words" replied the Vicar,

Alfie nodded Thomas to the front of the church and went to take his seat back with the Taylors, Thomas began to speak, his voice wobbly with nerves and upset,

"I'd just like to say a few words about my father…my dad was the most amazing man I've ever known, not many can say that their dads were good but mine acted as a mother and a father ever since the day I lost my Mam. He was a strong character, quick witted and determined and fiercely stubborn, he might not have had a lot but he always knew to be proud of what he had and who he was. From a young age he taught me to stand up for my beliefs and do whatever makes me happy. And I guess all I can really say is I loved him with all my heart and I hope that one day I'll be at least half the man he was, Love you pa" finished Thomas, voice still wobbling, he finally cracked into tears when he looked among the crowd of mourners and saw Alfie wiping his eyes and his Auntie Tess comforting him. He saw something in Alfie's eyes that showed him that Alfie wouldn't let him down and would always be there when Thomas needed him, Thomas heart flipped and swelled inside his chest.

**Review please :)**


	15. Chapter 15

Over the next few weeks Thomas struggled to live with his uncle whose liking for alcohol was becoming more and more obvious and was obviously a dependence rather than him just enjoying the occasional tipple. The shop wasn't ran to his fathers standards, who used to wake at 5 o'clock each morning to begin his days work and was slightly suffering because of Michael's lack of interest and lazy attitude, he lay in bed till midday every day and was always groggy from the amount of alcohol he had consumed the previous only to be continued the following day. Alfie was becoming increasingly worried about Thomas who had began to look tired, dark circles under his eyes and his skin an even paler tone than his usual ivory complexion. The young lad was working far too hard, starting the day in the clock shop and then spending the rest of the day at the Taylors farm, meaning he and Alfie had little time to spend together. He had to go out late at night round to Alfie's as it was the only opportunity they got to see each on their own, Alfie usually cooked them something and they sat by the fire and snuggled up together, sometimes they would draw each other, write each other poems, sing to each other, read to one another and dance together. Alfie had never felt such love for a person in his life before and Thomas' added vulnerability made it all the more precious, Thomas soon began to realise that he too was falling in love and that Alfie meant the world to him. The time he spend away from home at night had led Michael to believe that Thomas had a girl which he teased him to no end about,

"You've got a girl eh lad"

Thomas' facial expression remained neutral, not wanting to give anything away about the fact that his "girl" was actually a bloke.

"She must be ugly if you're hiding her away"

"No, their not ugly" replied Thomas, who was now beginning to blush,

"A beast then, one that can't be seen during daylight but beautiful by moonlight eh" quipped Michael jokingly, sounding oddly poetic in his attempts to annoy Thomas,

"Nothing like that" replied Thomas, wanting so badly for his uncle to change the subject,

"Well I hope I'll get to meet her soon enough, you never need be ashamed infront of me lad" said Michael sincerely. He was eager to meet this person that he could see was helping Thomas to deal with the loss of his father. He knew Thomas deserved happiness and hoped that this new found companion was giving him that.

Alfie hadn't seen Thomas properly for a few days so went round to his house one night during Michael's pub hours, they sat in the kitchen, Thomas on Alfie's knee, his arms wrapped round the older man's waist, Alfie's face nestled in Thomas' luscious black hair, his hands rubbing Thomas' back, when suddenly a slightly drunken Michael burst through the door, his face appeared shocked at first,

"Don't mind me" he slurred lightly as Thomas jumped up from where he was sat,

"It's not what you think" said Thomas hurriedly,

Michael laughed and went to the cupboard for his Poitin, as Alfie stood up to leave,

"Good night Thomas, Good night Michael" he said, bowing his head slightly as he left, Thomas preferred their usual goodbyes which consisted of a kiss and a warm cuddle but knew that in the circumstances some formality was probably a good idea. He smiled at Alfie, then closed the door softly behind him, his uncle flopped down into the chair at the head of the table, it felt to Thomas as though it was his way of showing he was the head of the family and the shop, Thomas slumped into the chair beside, trying to avoid eye contact as he took a long swig of the Poitin,

"So Alfie's your "girl" then is he?" said his uncle more as a factual statement than a question,

"What?" Thomas feigned ignorance,

"Don't try to pull the wool over my eyes Thomas, I know what's going on between you two"

Thomas was horrified, they had never been seen together by anyone and now they had been spotted by his uncle, his drunken uncle at that and he felt sick thinking of the possible punishments that could be in line for him, he could be kicked out by his uncle or reported or worse.

"It wasn't what it looked like" insisted Thomas,

"Yeah and I'm not an alcoholic" said Michael sarcastically, knowing full well that he had a problem with drink,

"I didn't think you were an alcoholic" lied Thomas,

"Sure you didn't Thomas, anyone with eyes can see that I'm always drinking" laughed Michael, "anyway stop avoiding the subject. Alfie?"

"What about him?" Thomas pretended to not understand,

"What's been going on between you two?" Michael pressed,

"Why should I tell you? You'll report us"  
"Report you for falling in love, I don't think so Thomas, I'm not as uptight as all that, you should know by now I'm a free spirit"

"It's not what you think though, we've not done anything "like that" " said Thomas honestly, blushing from the topic,

"Sodomy you mean" said Michael with a smirk at Thomas' discomfort, he loved to wind Thomas up and it was so easy to achieve it made him laugh,

Thomas nodded blushing scarlet whilst staring at the floor, unable to look his uncle in the eye,

"Thomas it's alright" said Michael, placing a hand comfortingly on Thomas' shoulder, "You're not the only one you know, I've tried it myself before" Michael said openly,

"You're not like me though" said Thomas, shocked by his uncle's admission,

"No I'm not like you but I'm not like other men either, I'm not interested in labelling people, if I like someone I'll show them, man or woman"

"So you like both?" asked Thomas, feeling curious,

"I guess" replied Michael "why do you think I drink?" he said laughing at himself,

"You shouldn't joke about drinking like that, its bad for you"

"No one would care if I died" stated Michael care free,

"I would" defended Thomas, a tear rising in his eyes at his uncles self hatred,

"I'm glad" he smiled at Thomas, "I don't judge you, you know, how could I?"

"Do you hate yourself for the way you are?" asked Thomas,

"Sometimes, but it's easy for me 'cause I like women too, so if I get feelings for a bloke, I shag a woman and forget all about them. Dad hated the way I was with women, always sleeping around; I was always the outcast, the disappointment" said Michael, wallowing in self pity,

"I'm sure that's not true"

"Oh it is. Why do you think I moved away?"

"He left you in his will though"

"Who else would he have left it to aye? Thomas promise me you'll not tell anybody, the things I've told you tonight" said Michael, looking up at Thomas' face, a pleading look in his eyes,

"I won't. Can I ask you something though?" said Thomas, taking Michaels hands in his own,

"Yes, anything"

"What's it like? To be with man intimately I mean" asked Thomas,

"You want the truth?"

Thomas nodded,

"It hurts like fuck at first, but then after a bit, its amazing the best feeling you can think of. I've only done it a couple of times though, I only loved one man, we were best friends when we were teenagers, his name was Charlie, we got drunk one night ad he kissed me and told me he loved me, we fucked and it carried on from there"

"What happened?"

"He died in a fire, a barn at his parent's farm caught light when he was asleep in there and he wasn't seen again, ever since I lost him I ignored my thoughts for other men and tried to concentrate on being "normal", but I don't think there is such a thing"

"How do you mean?"

"Well everyone's different aren't they, so what if were different, we shouldn't be ashamed. Do you love Alfie?" asked Michael,

"I suppose I do yes" replied Thomas,

"Tell him, I never got the chance to tell Charlie and its my biggest regret, Thomas you must tell him you love him"  
"He probably knows already"

"Tell him Thomas, he loves you, I see it when he looks at you, you're everything to him"

**This chapter isn't great sorry; reviews would be appreciated, thanks :)**


	16. Chapter 16

The pair sat in the warm, dimly lit kitchen, leaning across the rustic looking old table, a glass of whiskey constantly topped up infront of each of them, Thomas knew to go easy on the drink but Michael was draining it like their was no tomorrow, they talked some more of Michaels past dalliances and he went into quite some detail when describing the acts of making love between two men, Thomas found himself wanting to moan aloud from the sensational descriptions, he could feel he had a slight hard on and was glad he was sat down and that his crotch area was not visible to his uncle.

After a couple of hours it was 1 in the morning and Michael was out for the count, slumped in his chair, face on the table, head in his hands, elbows resting on the table either side of his head, Thomas decided it wouldn't be kind to leave his helpless uncle there all night so gathered all his strength and somehow managed to scoop Michael up in his arms, he put his new found strength down to working on the farm so often, he carried him through to his bedroom and lay his flat on his front, Thomas always worried that Michael would vomit in his sleep so unbeknown to Michael, since Thomas had observed his drinking habits he had always checked on Michael before he went to bed, checking that he was sleeping on his front over fear that his uncle would vomit and choke in his sleep and then he would have no family at all left, which was too much of an unbearable thought to contemplate. After tucking Michael up in bed, Thomas decided it would be best to go and see how Alfie was after there unexpected interruption earlier in the night. He shut the front door quietly as not to wake Michael and then set off walking, looking round he could see the village was quiet and there wasn't even the odd stray drinker wandering the streets. It only took Thomas 5 minutes to reach Alfie's pretty cottage, he chapped softly on the door, there was no answer, so he tried again, slightly louder this time, this time the door was swiftly opened by a tired looking, pyjama clad Alfie , rubbing his eyes as he greeted Thomas with his usual beaming smile,

"Well good evening Mr Barrow" teased Alfie, looking at his wrist as though he was wearing a watch, emphasizing the lateness of the hour,

"Sorry to wake you Alf. You don't mind do you?" said Thomas, feeling slightly guilty about waking Alfie at such an ungodly hour,

"Do I look like I mind?" said Alfie still smiling, "Get in here handsome" he said pulling Thomas in by his fore arms, closing the front door behind them, pushing Thomas softly against the wall, placing his hand on either side of Thomas' structured face, staring lovingly into his eyes before closing the small gap between their mouths, he kissed the younger boy softly but with great passion, trying to portray the deepness of his feelings for Thomas in the meaningfulness of the kiss, he snaked his tongue along Thomas' plump lower lip before carefully prodding his tongue into Thomas' warm pliant mouth, he brought on hand to rest on the nape of Thomas' neck and pay with the soft jet black hair that grew there, his other hand on Thomas' waist. Thomas kissed back fiercely and ran his slender fingers through Alfie's thick blond hair, scruffing up his bed hair even further.. They both pulled back from the kiss breathless and smiling goofily at one another, so hopelessly in love.

"Come through Thommy" Alfie gestured Thomas through the cosy, warm living room and offered him a seat, they sat side by side,

"Thomas what did Michael say?" said Alfie, a slight worried tone to his Cornish accent,

"He said he used to be like us" Thomas said,

"Sorry?" said Alfie dumbfounded by what Thomas had just said,

"He said when he was young, he was with a man and that he likes men and women. He told me other too, you know about all the stuff…we could…do together" explained Thomas, taking Alfie's hand in his own,

"Oh Thomas" smiled Alfie, "don't feel pressured to do anything with me though Thomas, you know I would never make you let me sodomize you or anything, I love you too much to hurt you, I know the pains"

"Alfie, it would be different, it hurt you because he forced himself on you" said Thomas kissing Alfie's' hand delicately,

"I know, but I never want to hurt you Thomas" said Alfie softly, squeezing Thomas' hand a little tighter,

"We could try other…stuff"

"You're so young my darling, what if you're not ready?"

"I am, I love you" declared Thomas softly,

"I love you too baby" replied Alfie,

"So show me. Touch me Alfie. I want you to" said Thomas, his beautiful blue eyes filling with lust and taking Alfie completely by surprise,

Alfie's head was filled with doubt towards whether this was what Thomas wanted or not, and if it would be wrong of him to succumb to the boys requests when he was still so young, but desire and love took over Alfie's thoughts as he pushed Thomas to lay back lengthways on the sofa, he stripped of his own shirt and sat between the young boys legs, Thomas' arousal pressing against his own through their trousers, he placed his hands on the collars of Thomas' shirt and began to slowly unbutton Thomas' crisp white shirt, pressing his mouth to each section of Thomas' pale skin as it was revealed by each part of the shirt that was peeled away, he kissed at Thomas' neck , sucking gently behind his ear,

"I love you Thomas, I love you so much, you're beautiful" he whispered into Thomas' ear,

Thomas smiled "I love you too",

Alfie kissed his way down Thomas' pale, slender torso until he reached the waistband of Thomas' trousers; he reached for the button, before looking up to Thomas for consent to remove the trousers, Thomas or course nodded. In all honesty Thomas was excited at the feelings that he would soon be to experience, his uncle had certainly sold them well and he was so glad that this time his intimate acts were going to be with Alfie, his first real love.

Alfie slowly undid the zip to Thomas' trousers and slid them down to his ankles, then he did the same with his underpants. Thomas watched the muscles of Alfie's upper back ripple as he leant close and began to kiss at Thomas' thighs, sucking gently at the skin, leaving small purple marks that would disappear by morning. He then took Thomas' ample and fully erect length into one of his hands as he teased the head of Thomas cock with his tongue, circling it seductively and occasionally dipping his tongue into the slit that was already leaking pre cum, Thomas gasped overwhelmed by the sensation and then flung his head back against the arm of the sofa as Alfie took his whole length into his mouth, bucking his hips causing Alfie to gag slightly and use his hand to tease Thomas hips down to a lower level. The young boy was in ecstasy as Alfie licked and rolled at his cock with his skilful tongue and sucked relentlessly, causing Thomas to groan loudly, he called out loudly one last time and then came into Alfie's mouth, Alfie swallowed enjoying the taste of Thomas' substance. He removed his mouth from Thomas' penis and pressed a delicate kiss to the tip of it, he moved to sit next to Thomas and pulled him onto of him and Thomas rested his head on Alfie's chest, as he began to catch his breath, Alfie stroked his hair and whispered softly to him,

"Alfie I'm sorry, did I…in your mouth?" panted Thomas, blushing as he spoke,

Alfie laughed, "Never be sorry, you taste delicious"

Thomas smiled and pressed a kiss to Alfie's chest," Thank you Alfie, what you just did was just….fantastic"

"Anytime my boy. You know I'd do anything for you, don't you Thomas?"

"Yes I know that"  
"I'm just saying that well you could...if you wanted like, you don't have to but..." stuttered Alfie, unable to say what he wanted to,

"What?" asked Thomas,

"Could move in with me" offered Alfie,

"Really?"

"Yes of course, I know that its not easy for you because of Michael's drinking and stuff. I'd take good care of you baby I promise"

"I know that, but what would we tell people?"

"The truth, that we're friends"  
"Friends?" asked Thomas, confusion in his voice,

"It's not a lie, you're my best friend…you're also my lover but that's our little secret" smiled Alfie, pressing his finger softly to the end of Thomas' nose.

Thomas laughed, "Yes"

"What?" asked Alfie,

"I will move in with you"

They smiled and hugged then fell asleep on the sofa, wrapped in each others limbs, Thomas feeling safe and secure and Alfie feeling loved and protective of his younger man.

**Review Please :)**


	17. Chapter 17

Thomas awoke very early in the morning to find himself being snuggled from behind by Alfie, his arms wrapped round Thomas' waists and one hand holding onto one of Thomas'. He nuzzled his face against Thomas' upper back, and subconsciously kissed his the nape of his neck softly, his bottom lip dragging slightly. Thomas could feel Alfie's morning glory pressing softly into the back of him, his own throbbing for release. He reached his hand down to his crotch and began to stroke; conscious of waking Alfie, Thomas tried to keep as still as he could on the narrow sofa that they had remained on all night, he also tried to keep his satisfied grunts to a minimum as he worked his circled hand up and down his rigid member, all these efforts were in vain as Alfie woke up anyway,

"Morning 'ansum" he whispered into Thomas' ear, "Let me do that for you" he said teasingly, a knowing tone of what Thomas was up to,

Thomas laughed and then gasped as he felt Alfie's hand join his on his penis, Alfie removed Thomas' hand and began to stroke him vigorously eliciting lustful moans from the young man,

"Alf, stop" gasped Thomas, Alfie immediately stopped his actions fearing he'd hurt or scared Thomas, Thomas turned round to face Alfie and saw the horror on the older man's face,

"What's the matter Thomas have I hurt you, I'm so sorry" said Alfie in a worried and mumbled hurry,

"No I just… I want to touch you while you, you know…touch me" said Thomas honestly, a slight blush colouring his cheekbones. Huge relief was evident on Alfie's face; he then began to smile,

"Oh thank God Thomas, I thought I'd done something wrong"

"You never do anything wrong to me" said Thomas, looking at Alfie with wide eyes and then kissing his chest,

"Oh God Thomas, you're so beautiful" smiled Alfie,

Thomas reached down to Alfie's hard on and took him in hand, stroking his hand up and down the length of his shaft, teasing the head with the soft pad of his thumb making Alfie gasp with pleasure, whilst Alfie resumed his previous actions on Thomas member, before the pair of them began to fill the room with animal like grunts and moans, so passionate and full of meaning. Thomas came first, squirting his substance all over Alfie's palm whilst he continued stroking Alfie, Alfie moaned as he licked his hand full of Thomas' cum and Thomas pleasured him, he then came into Thomas' hand with an almighty moan and Thomas also licked his hand clean, enjoying the unusual taste of Alfie's salty liquid on his tongue. Alfie collapsed onto Thomas and they lay spent for a few minutes whilst they caught their breaths.

It was 7 o'clock when they eventually rose from the sofa, both feeling a little crippled and deciding as they stretched their aching muscles that maybe next time the bed would be the wiser option. Thomas watched as Alfie threw on his clothes, enjoying the sight of Alfie's torso of rippling muscle and strong upper arms, Alfie saw him watching and smiled,

"You checking me out boy?" said Alfie as he threw on an undershirt,

"I am, have you got a problem with that?" asked Thomas teasingly,

"I feel so exposed" said Alfie sarcastically, wrapping his arms round himself and laughing. He threw some clothes at Thomas, "Get dressed Thommy, you need to go and tell Michael your news"

"You were serious then?" asked Thomas,

"Course I was" smiled Alfie, Thomas smiled back relieved Alfie hadn't changed his mind. He threw on his clothes, gave Alfie a soft kiss then headed into the village to see Michael.

After a few minutes he arrived home to find the front door of the shop ajar, which were unusual for so early in the morning, he went through the open door and traipsed upstairs, he could hear sounds coming from upstairs, muffled giggles and moans. He carried on walking to his uncle's room where he found a naked Michael pinned to the bed with a blonde, tarty looking piece straddled over him, both of them crying out,

"Ah fuck Thomas!" exclaimed Michael as he saw the young lad standing in the doorway, he pushed the blond woman off him and told her to go, slipping some money into her fist as she turned to leave. She winked at Thomas and made a grab for his crotch, giggling to herself before flouncing off downstairs.

"Who was she?" asked Thomas, shocked at his uncles cheap taste,

"No one just a cheap whore from the pub, met her last night" said Michael,

"A whore!" exclaimed Thomas,

"I can't fuck myself boy, a man has needs" Michael said, trying to justify his actions,

"I know but…you could do better than…that"

"I don't think so I'm a waster, an alcoholic, no one would touch me with a ten foot pole"

"Don't say that, its not true, you know it isn't" said Thomas kindly, trying to avert his eyes as Michael began to get dressed. He was shirtless and Thomas could see that for a man who drank so much he wasn't in such bad shape, he had a lean waist and a strong chest and upper arms, a figure Thomas wouldn't mind developing himself. "I've got something to tell you Uncle Michael" declared Thomas,

"What is it kid?"

"I don't want to hurt your feelings but I'm moving out"

"Oh" said Michael looking slightly crestfallen, "where will you go?"

"Alfie's, I know its wrong but we love each other"

"Its not wrong Thomas, you know its not, if it feels right to you then its right, ok"

"I guess"

"Thomas, you're not moving out because of me are you? Because of the drink? I can change"

"It's not that, honest its not"

"I'm glad, I wouldn't like to feel id pushed you away, not when I care for you so much" said Michael moving closer to Thomas; he came to stand directly infront of Thomas,

"Can I try something please Thomas? Just this once, I need to see if I'm still…like that" asked Michael, a nervous and broken tone to his gravelly voice,

Thomas stared at him gobsmacked, "No, I'm with Alfie" he said sternly,

"I don't fancy you; I just…let me kiss you. I'll never ask again I swear, I just need to know if I still feel like that and you're the only person I can ask that won't beat me up or have me arrested" explained Michael,

"You swear you won't ask again?"

"I swear it Thomas, I swear " he said holding onto one of Thomas' hands gently, and with that Thomas gave him a reluctant nod and let Michael bring his rosy lips to his own , they were soft and warm, Michael prodded his tongue into Thomas; mouth and snaked it against Thomas' and enveloped the young mans lips in his own. Thomas could taste whiskey and cigarettes on Michael, it was pleasant enough but it wasn't Alfie, he pulled back from the kiss as Michael moaned softly into his mouth.

"We are never doing that again" stated Thomas,

"Absolutely not, we're related, its wrong and I'm sorry, but thank you Thomas" Michael babbled,  
"Did you get any results from that experiment?" asked Thomas,  
"Yes, I 'm still a queer" Michael said self mockingly and the two of them laughed. They agreed to never mention this incident again and Thomas headed downstairs to fix some clocks, Michael joined him about 10 minutes later and at first it was awkward but after an hour or so it was as if it had never happened and the two of them sat working harmoniously for the rest of the day.

**Thank you to the guest that reviewed chapter 16, and thank you to those of you that have followed this story. Reviews are always appreciated, so please keep them coming. :)**


	18. Chapter 18

A few weeks had passed since Thomas had moved in with Alfie and things were going well between the two, so far no one had been suspicious of their living arrangements, simply believing them to be two young friends that also worked together. On the farm, the unusually sweltering heat of the late March weather was making their work a lot more difficult, working in the fields were Thomas, Alfie, Ted and a couple of lads who were twins called Bart and Benjamin, from down the village who were not much older than Alfie, both swarthy with curly, dark hair that was swept back on the top and cropped short round the back and sides, they were friends of Alfie's but Thomas had never met them before as they were new to the farm but to him they seemed nice enough. The five of them worked thoroughly all through the day, sweat dripping from the hair and running down the sides of their heads, all of the boys aside from Thomas stripping their shirts off. While in the company of others Thomas and Alfie rarely spoke to one another through fear of anything looking suspicious between the two of them however at one point Alfie had Thomas heart racing when he approached Thomas from behind and whispered sweetly in his ear,

"Why don't you take your shirt of Tommy? These lots bodies aren't a patch on yours"

Thomas blushed, "You shouldn't be looking" he said jokingly as he took his shirt of revealing his taut ivory torso, a smile appearing on Alfie's face,

"Beautiful" said Alfie as he winked before turning back to his work.

The twins were stood with Ted,

"What's he like?" asked Ben, curious about the young lad he had just met,

"Who Thomas? Yeah he's a nice lad, quiet though"

"Yeah he seems quiet, it seems like he's nervous of us. We should all go out together tonight, make him feel more comfortable around us" suggested Bart kindly,

"Is that a good idea? He's only 15" said Ted,

"Oh come on Ted, we all know you always went out drinking at his age" laughed Ben, "You pisshead"

"I am not, anyway my fathers hardly a good role model is he" replied Ted, a half smile playing on his lips about Ben's comment,

"Nor ours" said the twins in sync,

"So Thomas lives with Alfie does he?" asked Ben,

"Yeah, just recent that though, Thomas' dad died not long since and I think they just thought it best" explained Ted,

"They must be close" said Bart,

"Oh yeah very, like brothers" said Ted, smiling as he remembered Alfie telling him he had kissed Thomas, he looked across to the other side of the field where he saw Thomas and Alfie stood talking together innocently wondering if there was now something mutual between them,

"Thomas, your shoulders look a little red, maybe you should put your shirt on" suggested Alfie, concerned that Thomas' pale skin would later be sore from the sun,

"But then I'll be too warm" replied Thomas,

"Here, come here, I've got an idea" said Alfie, "Pass your shirt" he said to Thomas, Thomas moved closer and handed the long sleeved, blue shirt to Alfie, who took it and hung the shirt over Thomas' shoulders and back and then tied the sleeves loosely around Thomas's neck,

"Perfect" he said as he patted Thomas on his shoulder,

"Thanks Alf" said Thomas,

Ted couldn't get over the look of love in Alfie's eyes, the love that burned so strong for the young boy that he would do anything for him, it made him smile to see the cousin he always remembered as vain and self centred as a grown man caring for others.

When they had finished their work at 6 o'clock, Ted suggested they all go to the pub for a few hours, they walked down to the village and arrived at the Red Lion, where they would stay for the next 5 hours, Alfie showing his generous side by splashing out on drinks for the five of them most of the night from his grandfathers inheritance money, which pleased the twins as John Taylor paid them low wages. By 11 o'clock all five lads were all pretty drunk and Ted being the oldest suggested they called it a night on the drink, the others groaned in protest and ordered a final pint each which they all consumed pretty quickly and then decided that it would be a good idea if they went back to Teds for a few hours so bought a bottle of whiskey for the road, before heading out of the pub door and making the two mile walk back up to they Taylor's farm. On arriving at the farm they decided to go into one of the barns, knowing that the house probably wasn't the best of ideas considering the fact they might wake John, who was a bastard at the best of times.

They settled themselves in the barn and sat down on a few loose bails,

"Let's play Truth or Dare" said Ben,

"Must we, that game never ends well" protested Ted,

"Oh come on Ted, its just a bit of fun" said Alfie, whose arm was starting the grow heavy as he realised Thomas was resting his head against it as he dozed off into a drunken slumber, Bart twigged the fact that Thomas was snuggled up to Alfie but didn't say anything as Alfie shook him off and awoke the raven haired boy, who looked round and giggled drunkenly,

"You don't want to miss this Tommy, stay awake, we're playing Truth or Dare" said Alfie softly,

Thomas sat up straight and rubbed his eyes,

"All right, I go first, I chose Ted. Truth or Dare?" asked Ben,

"Truth" Ted replied with a merry glint in his eyes as he swigged the whiskey, Thomas found it unusual to see Ted looking so care free as he always looked as though he had the weight of the world on his shoulders,

"Ok, how many women have you slept with?" asked Ben.

Ted stayed silent for a minute and had an intense look of concentration on his face before revealing it was only 3,

"3!?" said Ben, shocked at the low amount,

"Alright Don Juan" mocked Alfie towards Ben, in defence of his cousin,

"Anyways my turn, Ben Truth or Dare?" asked Ted,

"Dare" challenged Ben,

"Bad choice, I dare you to take off all your clothes…"

"Is that it? Easy" interrupted Ben,

"…And run next door to Mrs McGuire's and take some of her underwear if the washing line and put it on and show us"

"That isn't fair" Ben whinged,

"Tough you chose dare, now get on with it"

Ben began stripping off all his clothes and then ran out of the barn door, while the others sniggered. 5 minutes later he returned wearing pink lacy draws which matched his current complexion as he blushed, the others were doubled over with laughter as he stood in the old woman's underwear.

"My turn again" said Ben with glee, "Alfie, Truth or Dare?"

"Truth" Alfie replied,

"How big is your cock?" Ben asked bluntly "I reckon it's big"

"I don't know, big enough" replied Alfie,

"Show us then" demanded Ben, as Alfie reddened

Alfie obeyed and took his cock out, showing it off proudly and laughing,

"So it is" giggled Ben,

Alfie smiled smugly, proud that the other's his size so impressive,

"My turn, I think, Bart, Truth or Dare?"

"Truth" he replied,

"Who has been you best shag?"

"Mollie Anderson, from the village" he said proudly,

"Good one Bart, she's gorgeous" said Ted,

"How the fuck did you pull her? She's too good for you" said Ben bitterly, obviously jealous of his brother's success with the ladies,

"I don't act like a arsehole like you" retorted Bart, his comment not as full of malice of Ben's." Anyway, Thomas, Truth or Dare lad?"

"Truth"  
"Who was the last woman you shagged and how good was it?"

"Emelia" admitted Thomas honestly, swigging down large gulped of the whiskey,

"Taylor?" asked Ben and Bart as Ted grimaced, Thomas nodded,

"Shit" said the twins laughing at Ted's discomfort,

"And how good was she, out of 10?" the twins pressed,

"8 and a half" Thomas decided this was a fair assessment of their sexual encounter,

"Hey boy, that's my little sister you're talking about" slurred a drunken Ted teasingly,

"Sorry Ted" laughed Thomas,

"She is it though, isn't she" stirred Ben,

"She's my sister so no" cringed Ted,

"My cousin so no" joined Alfie,

"Well I would. As for you Thomas, well played I didn't know you had it in you" said Ben,

"Ben shut up" said Bart,

"I've an idea" declared Ben holding up the now empty whiskey bottle, that only an hour ago had been full with the amber liquid,

"What?" questioned Ted,

"Well seeing as you all didn't choose to do dares last time, these are dares you cant get out of, we each spin the bottle and whoever the bottle lands on, you kiss, and I mean properly kiss"

"What happens if we don't?" asked Thomas,

"Anyone who doesn't has to sit here naked for the rest of the night. Who wants to go first?" said Ben,

"I'll do it" said Bart, spinning the bottle that landed on Thomas, his face grew nervous as he realised he would have to do this, he pulled Thomas face to his and kissed him sloppily, biting Thomas' lip as he did so, he pulled back and smiled at Thomas, "It's not as bad as you think" he said to the others,

"You queer" jeered Ben,

"This was your idea Ben, so your turn" said Ted smugly,

Ben spun the bottle which landed on his brother,

"Didn't really think this through did you bro?" said Bart in an annoyed tone,

Ben pulled Bart into a kiss, that ended nearly as soon as it started,

"Ben that was shit, I think you should start stripping" mocked Ted,

"No, I done it" argued Ben,

"Yeah for like a second, take them off",

Next to spin was Alfie which luckily for him landed on Thomas, they smiled at each other discreetly in relief, Alfie moved his lips to Thomas and their kiss grew hungrily before they quickly realised where they were and pulled apart,

"Get a room" said Ben, "Oh yeah, you already do don't you?"  
"What the fuck did you just say? Me and Thomas are friends" raged Alfie,

"You two live together, you are so fucking each other"

"Don't be so disgusting, he's 15 for fucks sake" said Alfie growing angrier,

"All right, it's just the chemistry between you, I'm sorry if I've offended you, I've just had too much to drink. Anyway on with the game eh and no hard feelings Alf" he said offering his hand to Alfie, which Alfie then shook.

When Thomas spun it landed on Ted, who he decided could have been worse, however he was a little shocked when he felt Ted's tongue begin to intrude his mouth, Thomas decided this was due to his drunken state and no underlying feelings, Ted was a nice kisser and Thomas could see why he always had women chasing after him which was why Thomas was shocked at the low amount of women Ted had slept with.

Last to spin was Ted, who brought Ben in for a passionate snog, Thomas even heard a grunt escape Ted, suggesting that he was taking his pent up aggression from tonight out on Ben, who surprisingly didn't mind and was giving just as much to the kiss as Ted, no doubt due to the fact that he was completely off his head on drink,

"And you called us queer!" said Bart in an annoyed tone,

An hour later they were all passed out in the barn, huddled together asleep on the hay, snoring contentedly in their drunken slumbers, knowing that in the morning they would regret the amount of drink consumed and ever playing that ridiculous game.

**Review please :)**


	19. Chapter 19

The next morning when the boys awoke from their drunken slumber the previous night was a blurry haze, they had slept on the top of a pile of bales in the barn, not exactly a comfortable bed but it had sufficed for the five drunken lads. Ted was first awake groaning loudly as he stretched his arms over his head, he rubbed his eyes as he tried to recall last night and his eyes flicked over to Thomas, who lay next to Alfie, shirtless and still fast asleep. Last night had confirmed Ted's suspicions of them being together as he flashed back to their steamy kiss in the game of Truth or Dare, he inwardly grimaced as he remembered his kiss with Thomas. Not long after Ted woke, the other boys began to stir and all looked round at each other blankly, sitting in silence whilst they rubbed their heavy heads before Ben disturbed the silence by vomiting all over the bale of straw that rested beside him.

"Over do it, did you bro?" cracked Bart,

"Oh haha" replied Ben, as he continued to vomit,

"Even Thomas hasn't spewed and he's 15. Outdone by a 15 year old, bad luck bro" teased Ben,

"Oh yeah Thomas is all man, isn't he?" retorted Ben spitefully,

"He's more of a man than you!" exclaimed Alfie, anger raging through him at Ben's ignorant comment,

"Just because he sucks your cock, doesn't mean you have to be up his arse Alf. Or maybe you like that, do you Thomas?" Ben continued,

Thomas cringed and looked as though he was about to cry,

"What the fuck did you just say?" shouted Alfie,

"You heard me. You two are disgusting faggots"

"Say it again" challenged Alfie,

"You're disgusting faggots" repeated Ben,

Alfie lost all self control and smacked his fist into Ben's nose, blood spurting from his nostril when it came into contact. Ben was shocked by the punch and didn't know whether to cry or fight back, he was in agony but furious at Alfie's actions so threw a punch into Alfie stomach, knocking him back, wheezing as he tried to catch his breath.

"For fucks sake, stop! One of you will get hurt" shouted Bart.

After a few seconds of recovery, Alfie threw a second punch into Bens mouth and knocked a tooth out, the pain of the tooth catching his fist creating anger in him, he didn't expect the fatal blow when it came, as Ben threw a punch right into the side of Alfie's head sending him flying back, tripping backwards and falling from the pile of bales and landing the 12 foot drop with a huge thud on the ground as Thomas screamed in terror. Alfie's head was flung against the hard ground where he lay groaning in agony,

"My back!"

The other lads looked at each other, exchanging worried glancing as they stared down at the ground below them; Ben stood gobsmacked at the scene, terrified of what he had done. Thomas scrambled down the side of the bale stack to where Alfie lay and knelt down beside him as he began to sob, the others followed him down from the bales,

"Tommy, my back…I can't feel my back" Alfie whimpered,

"It'll be ok Alf, I swear" said Thomas as he took hold of Alfie's hand, clasping it tightly in his own, not realising that John had burst through the barn door,

"You two look like a pair of queers there!" John boomed as Thomas quickly dropped Alfie's hand from his, "What the fucks all the noise? What's been going on? I heard a shout" he quizzed staring down at Alfie as tears ran down the young mans face,

"There's been an accident dad" said Ted,

"So I see" replied John, actually feeling a pang of sympathy for his injured

"My back Uncle John, I can't feel it" said Alfie, hating the situation even more as it involved receiving help from his former abuser,

"It'll be alright lad, I'll go and get some help" said John in his gruff voice, "What happened?"

"Ben and Alf were fighting and Ben knocked ar' Alf backwards from the bales and he hit the ground pretty hard"

"Good god, I'll be back as soon as I can" John said worriedly as he left the barn.

"You bastard!" cursed Thomas as he glared at Ben,

"How is this my fault, you dirty little queer" hissed Ben spitefully,

"How dare you? After what you've done Ben we should call the police" said Ted,

"Well I could call the police on these dirty little knob jockeys" retorted Ben, as Bart winced at his brothers insensitive and ignorant behaviour,

"You're vile, people like you disgust me and if I hear you speak like that again I will knock seven shades of shit out of you, do you understand me, you silly little twat, fuck off from my farm and don't come back" shouted Ted aggressively,

Ben looked taken aback by Ted's outburst and stood up to leave, not expecting the punch that Ted landed on the bridge of his nose,

"Now fuck off!" hissed Ted viciously as Ben clutched his nose and scurried off out of the door.

Five minutes later John arrived with the doctor, a wise looking fellow of about 40 with swept back, dark, greying hair and kind brown eyes, he knelt down beside Alfie and began to ask questions,

"Is there any pain in your back?"

"No, I feel nothing"

"And your legs?"

"Nothing" sobbed Alfie, "It's broken, isn't it? My back is broken"

"It's very likely but lets not jump to conclusions just yet" said the doctor, attempting to sooth Alfie's worry but not succeeding,

"We should fetch an ambulance Mr Taylor" said the doctor,

"I'll run down to the hospital" offered Bart.

They waited 10 minutes before Bart and the horse drawn cart arrived for Alfie, Thomas sat chewing his nails anxiously as they waited, when the cart pulled up John, Thomas, Ted and the doctor rolled Alfie onto a stretcher and bundled him onto the cart, Thomas jumping on to sit alongside his fragile lover. Everyone looked worried sick even John who had turned a light shade of green and had worry lines etched across his forehead. "_Guilt" _thought Thomas as he remembered all the things Alfie had told him about John.

They soon arrived at the hospital where three nurses came out to assist the doctor with carrying Alfie in, they lay him on his front on the bed and the doctor rolled his shirt up his back and began to poke at the swollen mess, it was bruised all over with lumps and bumps,

"Do you feel anything here?" asked the doctor softly,

"No" Alfie replied agitatedly,

"What about here?"

"No" he hissed as fat tears filled his eyes,

The doctor continued this exercise, Alfie answering "no" each time, the doctor then confirmed that his back was broken, and there was very little if not any at all chance of recovery.

"Of course there are rare cases" he offered, but it was all in vain as Thomas and Alfie and even Ted burst into tears in unison.


End file.
